Yugioh Future Conflict
by chaos018
Summary: Kaiba, in the success of his Duel Academy, is setting up new academies around the world. But, unbeknownst to him or to many in the world, a new evil power is growing. This follows the journey of Alain Johnson, his brother, and friends, all trying to ta
1. Chapter 1

_Yu-Gi-Oh__! Future Conflicts_  
**Chapter 1  
New Beginnings**

**_June 15th Birmingham, AL_**

It was a gloomy Saturday as Alain Johnson and his younger brother Michael walked towards the hobby shop from Alain's small white Mazda. They were just like everyone else. Alain was 21, 5'7" with red hair, blue eyes, and glasses. He always seemed to walk around a little downcast but he always had a cheerful smile and helpful hand to anyone who needed it. His brother, on the other hand, was something else. He was 19, 5'9" (He is mistakenly thought to be the older one.), with glasses and brown hair and eyes. Outside he has a gruff exterior and a lightning quick anger problem but inside he was one of great passion. Usually, these two were separated from each other, each in their own room, but on Saturdays, they tried to get to the local hobby shop and duel. That was one thing they both liked.

The hobby shop, called Beaners, was an old decrepit-looking warehouse quite out of place in the suburbs of Birmingham, Alabama, but there it was for all to see. When one walks into the store, you'd expect it to be big, but the store itself is small, the bulk being empty for the use of Kaiba's updated but used duel disks. Each week, Alain and Michael would drive up to Beaners just to trade, duel, and talk with old friends.

On the day in question they walked in as they would any other day.

"How are you, Señor Martí? Is there anything new today?" Alain asks.

"Yeah, dude, I've been looking for one damn card for a long time." Michael exclaimed rudely.

"Nice to see you, too, Michael. And to answer your question, Alano, I do." Martí says as he takes something out from under the cashier and brings it over to them. Martí continued, "First off, I have one card for each of you as a congratulations gift."

Confused, Michael asks, "For what?

Martí answered, "For my second surprise, you two are some of my best customers and the few good friends my son Santiago has here in the USA. So, to thank you, I have sent and paid for an application for the next recruitment of Duel Academy."

Surprised, Alain said, "Oh, my God…this is incredible. Do you happen to remember when and where the recruitment takes place?"

"At the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center, two weeks from today, 8:30 a.m. From what I gathered, it's going to be a two-part test: a written exam, which you will need to pass to get to the second part, and a duel against the proctor. Score high enough, you're in. Now for the catch," giving them their cards," I want you to use the cards I am giving you in your duels. Using them to win your duel will bring good publicity to my store. Those are from my personal collection, each one suited to your decks or dueling style." Turning around and walking back to the cashier, "Make me proud, boys, and felicidades."

"You have no idea how much this means to us. A dream, it seems. Thank you, sir, "Alain says sincerely. Looking at his brother, who all the while was just staring at his card, "What do you say, Michael?"

"Thank you, Mr. Martí. Couldn't I have at least admired my card for a moment? Look at this!" Showing him enthusiastically a Levia Dragon-Daedelus, "Goes perfectly with my Water Beatdown deck."

"Great," half-heartedly saying, already mentally preparing himself for the two week study. Lifting up his new card, Alain says, "Quite a powerful card. Since a piece of your faith, Señor Martí, is placed upon this card, I will be glad to use it, though I will need to alter my deck or even build a deck specifically for it."

Curiously, Michael inquires, "What d'ya get?"

"I cannot say for now," declares Alain, "You will have to wait until the exams."

"Forever secretive," Martí saying while shaking his head, "Well, guys, the group is in back like normal."

"C'mon, Alain, move your ass!" Michael shouts as he hurries to the back of the warehouse.

"Coming Mooooooooooother," Alain says noncommittally. Moving towards the back he thinks, Lord, help me with this.

The rest of this gloomy Saturday afternoon went quickly. Many of the duelists wished them luck, while others treated them with disdain, but none of this concerned them at all. Excitement had already taken hold. Other than accepting some of the praise, they treated this day as any other, using the time to trade, talk Duel Monsters, and duel.

Later that day, immediately upon seeing their mother and step-father, they explained what Martí did and what they would like to do. A little apprehensive at first, they relented to them, simply stating that they were adults now and could decide for themselves. Exhausted from that workout, both Michael and Alain walk towards Alain's room and shut the door.

Sighing with great relief, Alain says, "Stubborn, aren't they?"

"I was worried they would say no," Michael lets out.

"They did, but they still relented."

"Damn straight they did! Hey, I've been wanting to know. What d'ya get from Mr. Martí? Ever since you got it, you have been quiet, even for you."

"Not tellin'. Let's just say it'll give my deck the extra power it needs to succeed, which is why I was quiet. Needed to think on what I need to do to my deck. You still have those extra Mirror Wall, Ordeals of a Traveler, and Gravity Bind?'

Michael, curious once again, "Yeah………but, what do you need them for? They are almost completely useless."

"Appearances can be deceiving," Alain smiles mischievously, "Tell you what. You give them to me now and I will get you a card that you might need for your deck. But only after the Duel Academy tests. Besides, I will need to find it first." Shrugging, "You never know," he says mysteriously, "you might be able to see my new card in action."

Michael, going to his room long enough to search for the cards, returns with the three cards in hand.  
Reluctantly he gives them to him. "You'd better give me that card, whatever it is."

Alain playfully raises his left hand and smiles, "I swear on these cards that I'll give you that card." More seriously, "Go get some rest. We have only a small amount of time to study and test out our decks."

"Me? Study?" Laughing hysterically, "That's funny. I might pick up a few things here and there but I won't need to study." As haughtily as he could, he Michael says, "Those chumps will take one look at me and put me in Obelisk Blue. If you're _real_ nice, I might let you hand out with me."

Full of himself, Michael leaves the room. As he left, Alain couldn't help thinking to himself. _He must be a thickheaded ass to think he'll get into Obelisk Blue with that attitude._ Looking at the clock, he decides to go to bed himself. Tomorrow was another day.

The next two weeks were a blur for those two, or at least in Alain's mind it was. Alain spent his time studying for the upcoming written exam. In his spare time, he worked to complete his new deck containing his brand new card, though from time to time he dueled for fun, using the deck he loved, his Spellcaster deck. Michael did as he said he would, which was almost nothing to the naked eye. Every now and then, he would pick up a book, but that was usually just a comic book, but other than that, nothing.

"You know, Michael," Alain pointed out about a week before the exams, "you should be studying. We do not have much time left."

"Lay off. I'll get it done when I feel like it," Michael said with as much annoyance as could transfer, "What about you, huh? I don't see you doing anything."

"I got to go to Beaners to get a few cards and get an opinion of my new deck before the big day."

"Well, good for you," he says sarcastically, "Since you're going out get me a Coke."

"Give me the money and I will."

"No way. I don't trust you."

"Then shove off!"

Arguing aside, the two had prepared in their own way.

**_June 29 Birmingham, AL_**

Dawn. The light of a new day. Saturdays were days of rest, in which one could sleep over. And, normally, this would be the case for the Johnson brothers. Instead, they got up at 6:30 just to prepare, but mostly just to wake up fast enough and get a shower in before they rush over there to the Civic Center, what the locals call the BJCC. Each of them with a cup of tea in their hands, they seemed like the nicest guys on Earth. No one on Earth has ever seen them without it.

"Ready to go, Michael?" Alain inquires, "You have your deck ready for today's exams?"

"Yeah, might as well be," answered Michael, still a little tired.

"Ok, go ahead and get in the car. I'll get my new deck and drive us to the BJCC," he says as he grabs his newly-finished creation and keys. _Lord, help us do well. Doing well will give us the opportunity to help our mother have a life without working._ He heads out with hope in his eyes.

The trip to the BJCC was a short one, a 15 minute drive on the highway. As they round the curve, they saw the beige and round stadium that they knew as intimately as they did their home. It looked liked a kind of enclosed football stadium, but it was mainly used for concerts, ice skating, and events such as the one they were going to.

"There it is, Michael" shaking him awake as they turned off into the exit. Since they grew up in the area, or more precisely, driving through the area, they could navigate to the Civic Center with ease. A right here, a left there, and they found themselves at the entrance parking lot.

For them, it did not take long to find the registration table. Of course, there were signs they could follow but that did not make any difference to them. Upon seeing the registration table, they immediately ran towards with caffeine-powered energy. The receptionist, a breath-taking brunette with a nice fitting yellow and white shirt and skirt, a Ra Yellow, it seems, was there sitting at the table looking intently in a laptop. Noticing them, she asks, "How may help you?"

"My brother and I are here to try out for Duel Academy. I believe we should be listed." Alain says, quite out of breath from running the entire parking lot.

"Your names and photo ID?"

Giving her their driving licenses, "My name is Alain Johnson and this," pointing to his brother half-sleepily nods, is my brother Michael."

"Hmm…..." quickly types into the laptop, "Ah…….here you are." Looking at her watch, 6:55 am, "You two are a little early but luckily we're just now opening up. Please take these ID passes confirming that you are allowed to be here and take a seat inside if you want to relax while you wait."

"Actually, ma'am," Alain politely asserts, "We were hoping to get as least the written exam done right way, maybe even the dueling part if it is all ready in there."

"No, Alain, that'd be you. I would rather have breakfast right now," Michael corrects him.

"Sorry, but I am not in charge of that, sir. I'll call the proctor of this day's exam, Dr. Vivian Crichton, and inform her of you. That way she will not be mad at being interrupted from her organizing. The dueling arena where she is located is just inside. Go through the doors and go straight ahead. The breakfast table being set up in the stadium should be to your left and farther back. Thank you for participating and good luck on your tests."

"Thank you," facing Michael which had already had his mind wandering on the huge sign on the top of the stadium, "Well, Michael, what are you restraining yourself for? Your eggs wait."

With arms above his head, "EGGS AND BACON!!!" he screams excitedly as he runs towards the breakfast area.

"Don't mind him," Alan says to the receptionist, "he does this. Normally he acts as though he were retarded with what his "retarded" self's name, Tator." The receptionist chuckles at the thought as she watches Alan head towards the arena.

As he walked into the BJCC and into the nearest aisle to the arena floor, he could not help but admire the surroundings, so many good memories, so many good times. But, he quickly corrected himself. _I'm here for the exams. No time to reminisce and admire right now. Maybe later._ Though he and Michael were the first to arrive for the exams, other than the crew hired to set up, there seemed to be more kids inside, kids that appears to be already students of the infamous Duel Academy, though the fact that they already had on their school system's ranking jackets. Most were Obelisk Blue and Ra Yellow with a few Slifer Reds mixed in.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the BJCC, there stood a blond-haired, blue-eyed, pale-skinned Obelisk blue, named Nicholas Nahone. Standing tall at a tall 6'2" with a look of cold antipathy towards anybody on his face, he could scare a lion into submission. Leaning on a column, he says to himself, "Look at them! Idiots! They're nothing but amateurs, ants that should be crushed or burned with a magnifying glass. They come in, all full of themselves, believing they are more than what they truly are, trash, the very dirt I step in. When I am recognized as their superior, I'll decide who becomes a duelist or not! Only the deserving should duel!!!!!" Angrily, he hurries out.

At the same time, the receptionist was about to be given a break and her stand-in comes to her from behind.

"I'm here to relieve you," ????? says.

"Oh!!! It's you, Melei. You scared me." the receptionist exclaims. Standing up, "Thanks for substituting me. Strange day today and it isn't even starting yet. Not ten or so minutes ago, a guy just asks to immediately go through the tests. He did not seem to be in a hurry, but……I don't know. There seems to be something about the guy."

"Hmmm……….Maybe……..," Melei says deep in thought. Cheung Melei was that sort of girl, a real thinker, a real homebody. She was not very tall, only 5'6" with shoulder-length black hair and deep brown eyes. Though she did not herself notice it, she was very beautiful, but she will not agree to go out with anyone she does not deem worthy of her which turned out to be no one as of yet. She was kind and gentle to everyone, giving respect to those in authority. The daughter of a traditional Chinese wealthy man, she was as submissive as traditions dictate, but do not take this to be weakness. She will fight for all her loved ones, family, and friends. "You are coming back at around 9, aren't you?

"Yeah, I should be."

"Good, I'll have to watch out for this duelist you speak of. What does he look like?" she says with certainty. _Maybe he could be the one the seer in my city has told me of._

"He has red hair, blue eyes, glasses, about your height but a little taller and has a rude brother with him."

"Thanks," she says as she sits down at the laptop and waits for the other to return.

At the bottom of the stairs, Alain noticed Dr. Crichton, the current Obelisk Blue Girls Dorm headmaster and current head proctor of the exams. It was hard not to notice her. The tall Japanese woman comports herself as if she owned everything, yet had an aura around her that commanded respect. Rumor has it that her uncle was a high ranking member of the Duel Academy in Japan.

"Ms. Crichton?" Alain pokes her as he asks.

"Yes?" she turns, "Oh…a Mr. Alain Johnson, is it?" he nods, "and what is you'd like?"

"To take the written early if you do not mind. And before you ask, I'll give you the reason why I think I should. I need to see if I have what it takes to get in. And I know other kids want this as well. To put it bluntly, I don't want to waste time on something that I can spend elsewhere. Besides, the more time I have, the more nervous I become and the worse my abilities as little as they are. I want these exams on my terms where I can perform my best without any restrictions on time. "

_Bright, strong-willed, eyes of intelligences and strength, blunt and to-the-point, wants to do his best without trying to boast, has a presence about him. Seems to be a bit too forceful for me but I can settle that_, she thinks while deciding on his request. "This is highly irregular. Potential students usually try to waste time before going to the exams. And there are rules that state that the exams must be taken on the designated time, but I think I can allow one student this exception, but there is one condition. You must duel one person of my choice that has a high caliber deck." _Besides, a tradition of twenty years started by my uncle in Japan must be done. Somebody of superiority must show the masses that not all people deserve to be in Duel Academy._

Shrugs and smiles, Alain confidently says, "How can I duel my best without going up against the best?

_Confident, as well._ I might get to like this kid. "Report to the top floor. Duel disks will be available if necessary. I'll call you by intercom when it is time for you to take the duel portion. If you finish the test before I call, just wait in here or out in the food area. Before you get there, I will already called them up there and given them my permission for your early testing." Privately she hopes that he'll be a challenge worth breaking the rules for.

"Thank you, Ms. Crichton." While running to the top, he runs into Michael, surprising with a book in one hand, and, not surprisingly, a mouthful of eggs and bacon being shoved into his mouth. "Michael, going to take my exam, the written one anyway. Wanted you to know so that you could go on through the day without noticing me." And as Alain ran up to the exam room with his deck and all, Michael looked up from his book wondering what it was that distracted him.

Getting through the written exam was easy, it seems. Types, attributes, strengths, weaknesses of common deck types, special summoning requirements, sidedecking, game mechanics, all easy. So much so that he did not notice, when he was done, that he still had two hours to go before the actual event started. _Guess I'd better get some food now that the test is over with. Taking tests over an empty stomach drains you._ Of course, to someone as oblivious as any man, he did not notice that someone was watching him from behind.

At 10:30, tired of waiting for the intercom to call him to the dueling arena, he left the food area and started back for the dueling in the hopes he did not have to wait for any longer. Just in time, too, because he was able to catch the last moments of Michael's duel.

Male Dueling Proctor: 2500 LP  
Michael: 1300 LP

Dueling Proctor's Field: Gilford the Legend equipped with United We Stand and Mage Power (4400 Att)  
Dueling Proctor's Hand: nothing

Michael's Field: A Legendary Ocean  
Michael's Hand: Premature Burial

Dueling Proctor: "Guess you'll have to wait until next year, kid."

Michael: "You'd think that but I'm not going to quit. My turn. I draw." Looking at the card, "Awesome, the card Martí gave me. You are going down dude. I active Premature Burial (2500 LP/500 LP). By paying 800 LP, I can special summon one monster from my graveyard, and I choose Amphibious Bugroth MK-3." A roar from an engine fills the arena as the submarine emerges from the water. "Because of A Legendary Ocean, all our WATER in our hands and field are lowered down by one level, as well as gain 200 Attack and Defense. This little effect allows me to summon this card," holding up Levia Dragon-Daedelus, "which I do now, I sacrifice MK-5 to summon Levia Dragon-Daedelus." The leviathan appears with a roar, a monster of great strength (2800/1900), "Normally I would need two sacrifices for this monster, but as you know, lowers my Level 7 to Level 6. Not that I need A Legendary Ocean to win, or I do not need on the field to win. I use my sea serpent's effect. By sacrificing ALO, I can destroy all cards except itself." A massive tidal forms and crashes throughout the field, destroying everything in the wake except itself. "Now, my monster, attack directly." (0/500)

Dueling Proctor: "Congratulations. The results of your exams here shall be recorded, reviewed, and shown by 1," he says as the holographic displays shut down.

_Have to give him credit. At least he won. He might have a chance at getting in._

"Nice duel. A little close and he used too many of his defenses at the same time, but he pulled it out," ????? said behind Alain.

"The dude was too y, parading around as if he owned the place. I almost hope he doesn't pass," ?????2 says.

"Hey! Yeah, all that may be true but he's my brother." exclaims Alain as he turns around to see two guys in Ra Yellow jackets. One guys was tall seemed to be Indian looking but had no accent. The other, who was shorter than him by at least half a foot, had a Spanish accent and a small mustache.

"Sorry, we meant no disrespect. We were merely stating the facts. Let's start over. My name is Raj Patel.," the tall one says, "and my small Argentinean friend here is Gonzalo Fuentes."

"Hello, sorry, man," he says apologetically.

"Hey, it's no problem. What you said is true. No matter what I have said in the past, he never really listens to me when it comes to his dueling," Alain points out.

"You already take the dueling portion?" Gonzalo asks, "I remember when I took it last year. It seemed easy at the time."

"Umm..."

"I remember this part myself. It was a bit dificult but here I am," Raj interrupts before he answers.

Answering more carefully, worried about another interruption, "Not yet, it may be that I could be last. I did ask a Dr. Vivian Crowler to take the written exam early to prepare for the duel portion and she did say, to do that, I was to duel the person she picks."

At the same time, both Gonzalo turns to each other with a look of surprise and fear.

"The tradition continues," Gonzalo says mysteriously.

"What tradition?" Alain hardly constraining the curiosity he had.

"It's...," Raj gets in before the intercom interrupts.

ALAIN JOHNSON, PLEASE REPORT TO THE DUELING PLATFORM!!! I REPEAT, ALAIN JOHNSON, PLEASE REPORT TO THE DUELING PLATFORM!!!

"Umm...that's me. I guess I'll find out soon enough, huh? See you guys later. Maybe we'll see each other later."

"Maybe," Raj answers genuinely.

"Good luck to you," Gonzalo calls out as Alain leaves. _You are going to need all the luck in the world to win that duel._

Michael was taking a seat near the front when he heard on the intercom about his brother. _I gotta see that damn deck of his. That damn deck has been kept from me for two weeks. And I know for a fact that he has his new card in it. He always keeps his word. Always._

Melei was already seated near the top railing watching over the arena for the red-haired duelist her friend told her of. As he came through, she notices him. _Kinda cute, not the most handsome man in the world, but definitely not hard on the eyes. Maybe he's the one, God willing._

Nicholas Nahone comes back just as he overhears two Ra Yellows about Dr. Crichton's tradition. _Oh...finally, some rank amateur gets his or her ass kicked and it might give me a good laugh. He soon finds a seat and watches the spectacle._

As he nears the bottom of the stairwell, Alain asks an attendant where he can find the public-use duel disks. Luckily, it wasn't very far, as he points out a foot ahead. All he had to do was notify him when he was done with it so he could put it back away. Alain did just that, taking the nearest one and securing it on his right arm. _Kinda heavier than I thought it would be. Well, live and learn._

Walking towards the platform, he suddenly notices that no one is present.

"Where is my opponent?" I know I am on time."

"Your opponent is right behind," Dr. Crichton says with conviction behind him."

"You, ma'am? I thought that I'd d be dueling so other duelist..."

"I said that you would be dueling a dueling I picked, and I choose myself since I am the best in the building. Now please take your place on the platform. and let's see you do you best."

They branch off one left, one to the right, one to the left. As they stepped into place, they looked at the other, sizing up what they might could do. "Duel on!" as they activated their duel disks and starting the duel.

Vivian's LP: 8000  
Alain's LP: 8000  
They both draw 5 cards.

Alain: "Ladies first."

Vivian: "Thank you. Not many gentlemen out in the world these days." She looks at her hand (Ancient Soldier of the West x3, Ancient Soldier of the South, Heavy Reinforcements, and Premature Burial) "I summon Ancient Soldier of the West in Attack mode (1300/100)!" A light shines as a soldier wearing the armor of the old Spanish Empire and carrying the ceremonial pike jumps out and screams out his battle cry. "Now for his ability. When an Ancient Soldier of the West is summoned, I can search my deck for an Ancient Soldier of the East, add it to my hand, and shuffle my deck." Finishing these things, "I end."

Alain: "Ok I draw." He looks as his hand (Needle Burrower, Graceful Charity, Ameba, Shien's Spy, Creature Swap, and Sangan). I'm in trouble if her deck is quick. "I activate Graceful Charity. This card allows me to draw 3 as long as I discard two from my hand." Picking up his three cards, he sees that he got a Call of the Haunted, Ordeal of a Traveler, and a Mirror Wall. He chooses his Ameba and Shien's Spy to discard to the graveyard. "I place one monster face-down and set 3 s/t. I end."

Vivian: "So far, I am unimpressed. I draw." (Rush Recklessly) "I summon Ancient Soldier of the East (1200/1500) in Attack mode." Out of the shadows bursts forth a samurai bearing his kitana in Alain's direction, ready for attack. "And like Ancient Soldier of the West, my new soldier of the East allows to search and add another card, my Ancient Soldier of the North." She, once again, picks up her deck and search for her card, places the card in her hand and her deck in her deck slot. "My solider of the East attack his facedown monster." Within the twinkling of an eye, the samurai hurries to the monster, slicing it straight through, revealing Sangan (1000/600).

Alain: "You know what that means. When my Sangan is sent from the field to the graveyard, I get to search my own deck for a monster, with the attack strength of 1500 or less." Searching for the right monster, "I choose Magician of Faith (300/400)!"

Vivian: "That may be true but that does not stop the fact that I have another monster on the field.  
Attack directly, my soldier of the West." The Spanish imperial takes hold of his pike, charging with a fierce look in his eyes. With one swift motion, he slices down at Alain, cutting straight through. "I set 1 s/t and end."

Vivian's LP: 8000  
Alain's LP: 6700

Alain: "Maybe I should try to build a deck like yours. Those monsters you have seem alright. I draw." (Limiter Removal) "I place one monster facedown and end."

Vivian: "Thank you for the compliment but you are doing pretty pathetic right now.

Michael shouts from the sidelines, "Don't talk to him that, you whore!! Only I can do that to him!!"

Alain: "Thanks for the support, as surprisingly as that seems, but I can handle myself.

Vivian: "May I continue, boys?" With a stare that could scare a dead man, "I summon Ancient Soldier of the North (1400/800) in Attack mode!!" A knight wearing the armor of a battle-ready warrior jumps and bears his double-edged sword. "And like my soldiers of the East and West, he gives me yet another card from my deck, my Ancient Soldier of the South." Going through the motions of gaining that card, she continues her turn, "I now activate a Spell Card, Heavy Reinforcements. This allows me to search my deck for a Warrior that Level 6 or more." Picking up her deck for a second time she picks out her card and shuffles her deck. "I choose my Ancient Soldier-Alexander the Great!! Unfortunately I cannot attack when I activate this card. Your turn."

Alain: "I draw." _Damn it, Koitsu, not the card I need._ "I end."

Vivian: "I draw." (Call of the Haunted) "I sacrifice my soldiers of the West, East, and North to bring forth my ultimate monster, Ancient Soldier-Alexander the Great! (2700/2600)" The holographic light shines as a massive, muscle-bound, blond-haired warrior holding his massive double-edged sword appears with the look of bloodlust in its eyes.

Melei looks in awe and fear at the sight of such a massively powerful monster. I have heard rumors of this card. _C'mon, Alain, you can beat this thing!_

"HAHAHEHEHE!!" Nicholas laughs hysterically like a five year old that heard a corny joke. _Totally out of his league, shrimp._

Raj and Gonzalo had just came in the arena are when they saw her summon this new monster. They could not bring up a thought to describe the dread on their face.

Michael, as thoughtless as Raj and Gonzalo right now, just gazes upon this thing.

Alain, completely oblivious of the others around him, looks at it and just says one word, "Cool!"

Vivian: "I wonder what you'll think after I tell you his effect. I normally would summon this monster with just two sacrifices but if I want to, I can sacrifice more. If this is the case, my monster can attack the same number of times equal to the amount of Warrior monsters I tributed until the end of my turn. As a bonus, Alexander gains 200 ATT for every Warrior in my Graveyard." Alain watches as the massive monster grows even more powerful, going from 2700 attack to 3300. "Unfortunately, I cannot activate Equip Spells until my next turn. Now, Alexander, attack the facedown monster..."

Alain: "I activate a trap card, Ordeals of a Traveler. When a monster declares an attack, I can activate this. You choose a card in my hand and guess whether it is a Monster, Spell, or Trap. If you guess right, you can attack as normal, but if you are wrong the monster you summoned returns back to your hand."

Vivian: "Quaint trap. Okay, the middle card, Monster."

Alan: "Crap." He revealing Koitsu, while he sees the huge sword crash down on his monster, utterly destroying it. "That was my Magician of Faith. When she is Flip Summoned, which an attack does, I can choose a Spell in my Graveyard and return it to my hand. And the only Spell happens to be Graceful Charity." Grabbing the newly returned card and placing it in his hand.

Vivian: "Ok, I attack again with Alexander. Far right card, Spell."

Alain: "Crap again" Revealing Graceful Charity, as the giant sword cuts through him like a knife through butter, pushing him farther back (8000/3400)

Vivian: "Now Alexander attack once more. Far left, Spell."

Alain: "Damn it straight to hell." Revealing Limiter Removal, while being pushed back near the edge of the platform.

Vivian's LP: 8000  
Alain's LP: 100

Vivian said with much contempt: "And I thought you'd be at your best."

Alain painfully walks back to his original spot: "You have yet to see the true power of my deck. My turn?"

Vivian: "Go ahead. This duel is over anyway."

Alain: "You know, it's times like these that remind you that duel isn't really over until the last cards is drawn." Vivian scoffs at the comment. "I draw." Excitedly, he think as he sees the card, the card Martí gave me! I can't think of any better time to use it. He looks at Vivian and smiles, "I think it's time for me to show you my best. First, I activate one of my facedown s/t, Call of the Haunted, and bring back Magician of Faith. I also chain it to my other s/t, Mirror Wall. I now sacrifice my Magician to summon Needle Burrower (1700/1700). Strange thing. Rules state that the only ways for my Call of the Haunted can leave the field is through the destruction of a monster through battle or the destruction of the trap itself through a magic or trap card. Lucky for me it stays on the field. It allows me to bring another card out. Now you get to see MY ultimate monster. I sacrifice my Call of the Haunted, Mirror Wall, and Ordeals of a Traveler to special summon Uria, Lord of Searing Flames!! (0/0)" The arena grew dark as the legendary red dragon descends through simulated thunder clouds. There was a silence throughout the stadium as everyone is taken back by the sight of this card. "Do not worry. Pegasus reprinted this card with reduced powers; it is still powerful, nonetheless. Now for one of my monster's special effects. It gains 1000 ATT for every Continuous Trap card in one's graveyard, now it has 3000 ATT. Now I activate its other effect. I can destroy one set spell or trap on the field, and none of them can counter it." A ball of fire forms in Uria's mouth and shoot down towards Dr. Crichton's field, destroying the lone spell. "Here comes the twist. Most people would try to attack now and control the field for a few turns but I am gonna end it here and now. I activate Creature Swap. We both now choose one monster on the field and switch control of them. I choose Uria.

Vivian: "You fool! Why would you give me such a powerful monster? I have no choice but to choose my Alexander the Great."

Once the spell vanishes, Alain answers, "Because, not only does Uria's strength vanish," just as its ATT drops to 0, "but also I get to use another of my monster's ability."

Vivian: "If that is the case, my Alexander's ATT goes down, back to its original 2700 ATT, since you do not have any Warriors in your graveyard. Even with those two, you cannot win this turn."

Alain wags his finger at this fact: "Au contraire, I can. I activate Limiter Removal. This card doubles the strength of all the Machine monsters on my side of the field as long as they are destroyed at the end of my turn." Needle Burrower shrieks with power, as electricity pours into it double its attack to 3400 ATT. "Now Needle Burrower, attack Uria." Needle Burrower hurries to Uria with its powerful pincers wide open grabs the dragon's head with one of its pincers and decapitates it with the other.

Vivian's LP: 4600  
Alain's LP: 100

Vivian, saying with desperation in her voice: "But I am still in this duel and at the end of this turn, you lose your monster."

Alain: "Not for long. You see, Needle Burrower's effect does damage to your LP equal to the number of levels it has times 500. Uria is level 10." With that realization, Vivian looks upon his mechanized scorpion as it stings her with its tail, draining 5000 LP from her.

Vivian's LP: 0  
Alain's LP: 100

Alain: "That's game."

Vivian, shocked: "I thought at the beginning that you were just a pathetic duelist, laying three traps knowing they could have been destroyed at anytime, but that display was...quite extraordinary. I am pleased to tell you that you passed the dueling exam. Your results will be shown at 1. Congratulations on passing."

She turns and walks away, deep in thought.

_Time to get Michael and possibly have lunch._ Alain walks by many other students, still in shock, and places the duel disk on the table with the others.

As Alain climbs the stair, Michael runs down, almost tripping and falling.

"Dude, that was awesome!" Michael exclaims.

"I almost thought I'd lose that one. The only thing I was waiting for was Uria, the card I promised Martí I would use. If it wasn't for that promise, I would have bought my time with a couple other cards. How did your written exam go?"

"Dude, I dunno. Maybe I should have did what you said a couple of weeks ago."

"I'm sure you passed. We'll see later on. Want some lunch?"

"Only if it's chicken. Both of us need some comfort food after today."

And they began their way to the food area. Seeing Raj and Gonzalo in passing, Alain invites the two to join him and his brother at lunch to discuss, amongst other things, the duel and Uria.

Melei watches as Alain walks out. _Now I must duel him. The prophecy has come true. I have found the one who has tamed the dragon demon._

Nicholas gruffly says to himself, arms crossed, "Lucky draw, topdecker."

Below the depths, in a darkness blacker than the depths of space, a being of untold power awakes.

"Preparation are being made, sire," a lesser being said trembly.

"And the boy?" ????? asks.

"He has been found."

"Good, I tire of this darkness. Soon I shall have the power to break free of this prison. I will break free!"

_to be continued……………………_

Cards created this chapter

Ancient Soldier of the West  
Level 3/1300/1100  
Earth/Warrior  
When this card is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned, you can search for one "Ancient Soldier of the East" and add it to your hand. The deck is then shuffled.

Ancient Soldier of the East  
Level 3/1200/1500  
Earth/Warrior  
When this card is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned, you can search for one "Ancient Soldier of the North" and add it to your hand. The deck is then shuffled.

Ancient Soldier of the North  
Level 4/1400/800  
Earth/Warrior  
When this card is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned, you can search for one "Ancient Soldier of the South" and add it to your hand. The deck is then shuffled.

Ancient Soldier of the South  
Level 2/900/1800  
Earth/Warrior  
When this card is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned, you can search for one "Ancient Soldier of the West" and add it to your hand. The deck is then shuffled.

Ancient Soldier—Alexander the Great  
Level 7/2700/2600  
Earth/Warrior  
You can sacrifice more than one monster to Tribute Summon this card. It that is the case, this monster can attack a number of times equal to the number of Warriors tributed until the end of your turn. This monster gains 200 ATT for every Warrior in the Graveyard. When this card is successfully Tribute Summoned, until the end of your turn, no Equip Spells can be activated.

Heavy Reinforcements  
Spell  
This spell can only be activated during Main Phase 1. Search your deck for one Warrior that is level 6 or more, and add it to your hand. The deck is then shuffled. Once resolved, you must skip your Battle Phase.


	2. Chapter 2

_YuGiOh! Future Conflicts_  
**Chapter 2  
Divine Providence**

_June 29 Birmingham, AL_

"…and that is how I got the idea of using Uria as an object of burn." Alain finishes the story of his created deck, Needle Burn, in the food area of the BJCC at lunchtime.

The clouds over Birmingham moved to unveil a bright sunny afternoon. Alain had just finished his duel exam with Dr. Crichton, the exam's head proctor, already described as the duel of the year. To him, though, it had been a great duel, one to remember, but for every step you take, there is always a bigger one after.

"Man, I do not think my deck could stand that pressure. You stared that Ancient Soldier, a monster which Dr. Crichton has won countless duel since its release and, for a moment, I saw you smile. That was determination," Gonzalo Fuentes exclaims, still unbelieving of what had just happened. You wouldn't know it from just meeting him but Gonzalo was one of the most jovial people there. At a short 5'4" and 16 years of age, this teen from Buenos Aires, Argentina had an incredible intelligence to unlock, but, at the moment, was too afraid to use it, especially with deck ideas. Maybe this was what Alain found in common with his new-found friend, a fear of showing their true power.

"It wasn't determination, though a part of that did play in it. To me, it was fun," Alain corrected, "Seeing those new cards…they were relatively new, right?" Both Raj and Gonzalo nodded in agreement. "These semi-new Ancient Soldier cards gave rise to another super powerful monster. God knows I enjoyed it."

"You are thoroughly out of your mind," Raj comments. Many thought as Raj did about Alain, but he was one of a kind. A United States citizen by birth, his Indian parents tried and succeeded at instilling in him a respect for all life. He used to be a pre-med student but found it to be really, which is why he comes to Duel Academy, to improve his natural gift for dueling to the point of financing the rest of his studies.

"So many have said," Alain laughs, "To tell you the truth, this deck is only experimental. This is its first day out in the sun. I'll need to fiddle with it some more to give it more speed."

"You're crazier than I thought to go out with an untested deck," Raj hurriedly says as he takes a bite out of his overly priced slice of cheese pizza.

"I made a promise and I always keep my word. Always. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go buy my meager lunch for the day. Wonder they have that is under $3 and is still filling?" And he leaves knowing full well that his brother Michael and his friends would further talk about him.

"What's his deal?" Gonzalo asks Michael.

"What? His single-mindedness and his various other quirks?" He has always been that way, and somehow, he still has fun. Knowing him, he'll probably keep a record of the deck for another situation and then retire it. His single-mindedness makes him prepared, but flexible and intuitive, like a mix of the last King of Games Jaden Yuki and that famous duel theorist I read about in my few minutes of study. Damn! What was his name…a Dr. Bastion Misawa? That's it. He even has several decks like that doctor dude."

"Strange mix, that one." Raj says, "Oh, here he comes."

Alain comes back with nothing in hand, "I did not see anything in my range. Besides it's almost one o'clock.

Just as he finishes that sentence, the intercom chimes.

ALL PARTICIPATING DUELISTS REPORT TO THE DUELING ARENA FOR NEW ON THE FINAL RESULTS! ALL PARTICIPATING DUELISTS REPORT TO THE DUELING ARENA FOR NEW ON THE FINAL RESULTS!!

"Michael, you hear the lady, time to go." Alain tells his brother.

"Shove off, I can hear ."

Brotherly love. Can't live with it. Can't live without it. "Well, c'mon, then. Gonzalo, Raj. I will hopefully see you guys later," Alain says his goodbyes as he left alongside his brother.

Luckily, they were able to get to the arena in a timely manner. There were a great number of participants hurrying in, hundreds it looked like. Even luckier still, they found good seats in the middle, where they could see and hear their speaker well enough not to strain.

"Wonder what they'll do with us? Either way, we both had a good time," Alain points out to Michael.

"Dude, I seriously do not know and you're right. We did have a good time."

As more kids came in, Michael and Alain continued to look around. Amongst the incoming crowd, they could see the many Duel Academy students that came along Dr. Crichton who still has yet to come in. Quiet becomes the crowd as the stadium lights darken. For a moment, when total darkness blanketed the entire room, there was a growing sense of dread welling up inside it. Out of the distance, Alain could hear the thumping of what could only be described as a heart. THUMP. THUMP. This slow thumping of the heart slowly becomes quicker and louder. _What is that noise?_ Alain thinks despite the darkness, _Oh, wait, that's my own heart. Oh, be still, my beating heart. _Without warning, a scream bellows, horrible and deathlike, just as a light suddenly comes on. Smoke begins to fill that particular spot. As the smoke began to fade, a figure began to form in the shape of a woman. Further fading, the woman is revealed to be Dr. Crichton.

"Isn't that Dr. Crichton?" Michael asks, oblivious to the fact that everyone in the arena could hear him over their own breath.

"Yeah, and try to be more quiet," Alain tells him, "I think everyone heard you." Though he was reluctant, Michael did settle down.

Once the smoke fully clears, an attendant quickly comes out, bringing her a wireless microphone.

"Ok, as you all know, my name is Dr. Vivian Crichton, current headmaster of the girl Obelisk Blue dorm at the Duel Academy in Japan. You are here today to see if any of you have what it takes to get into my precious school. Sadly, not all of you will be accepted. The results of you exams, whatever they may be, will accessible from the computers out in the foyer. Those who are accepted will also be given the dorm in which they are placed and school uniform, as well as a new state-of-the-art duel disk system, all of which are located and the information desk, except the duel disk itself, which will given to you on the boat going to the duel academy." With the "official" part of my speech out of the way, she adds, "As my already-present students know, our founder, Seto Kaiba, has announced that he will be opening new Academies around the world, each in an isolated spot, and one will happen to placed near North America for those students who lived in that area. I have been given the honor of being temporary chancellor until one is trained for the new office. This particular Academy will be placed in what is commonly known as the Bermuda Triangle, to be specific, a small island within it called Exodus Island. Any here today who have passed and have been accepted, both student and teacher alike, will be assigned there. Those who need a way over to the port in Brunswick, Georgia, where the boat we have chartered is located, will be given a ride over there once we have been notified. The first day of our classes will be August 14th. And at the end of that note, I bid you all farewell and good luck to the lucky few," Crichton leaves and the lights that were once dark come back on with a brilliant fury.

As the others began to file out of the arena and hurry towards the computers that hold their results, Alain holds his hand out, keeping Michael pinned in his seat, "Michael, we need to wait. With all those people trying to get to those computers, we'll be lucky to get a good spot in line without being pushed and pulled out of it, not to mention the ones who will just cut in line. It'll be better if we just wait for the lines to die down."

Michael, angry at being forced down in his seats, stands up without any resistance and says, "Screw that! I've gotta get to that computer!" He jumps over three consecutive rows of chairs to get to a clear aisle and runs to an already long line.

_When will he ever learn some patience?_ After a minutes thought he answers himself, _Probably when hell freezes over._ While Michael is fighting to stay in line, Alain waits in the hope of one of the lines shortening. To waste the time, Alain pulls a book out of his back pocket and reads.

Melei was not amused by the spectacle, a simple tradition to entertain the students that came. She wasn't worried about that at all. No, the only thing she was worried about was this Alain Johnson. He has tamed the demon. No one can say that and live. I must duel him. Now where exactly is he? Looking to the right, she only sees maniacal guys and girls. To the left, she found her and, to her surprise, he was in the seat, patiently waiting and reading. _Peculiar, but as they say, 'All good things come to those who wait.' _Making her way through the crowds, she noticed how solemn and peaceful he looked, regretting it was to be her that would interrupt him. Just as she arrived at his seat, Alain noticed her.

"Hello," Alain says as he looks at his new-found guest. _Oh, my God! She has to be one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen. Cálmate, Alano, girls like her never even consider you. She could have any man around so why should she even want me, period._

"Good afternoon," Melei bows respectfully, "I am Cheung Melei and I was a student of the Duel Academy in Japan and am now a student in the Exodus Island campus." Before Alain starts to introduce himself, she continues without pause, "I am already of your name, Mr. Johnson."

"Please call me Alain. I do not like to be formal like that."

"Very well, Alain. Please forgive my rudeness for not allowing you to introduce yourself. I was here when you dueled Ms. Crichton and, to be honest, I believe everyone has heard of your duel, at least within the building," she says earnestly.

"I'm surprised anyone cared to watch me. That was one close duel, though."

"It might have been better if you had a better starting hand."

Alain says, "You could tell that?"

"Yes, your body language gave it away."

"To tell you the truth, that was just a test deck."

"Really?" Melei questions. _A rarity among men, especially American men. He is honest and forthright. I am beginning to like him._

"Yes, I was trying to fulfill a promise and to fulfill it, I had to build my deck around it or using it in a unique way."

_Yet another rarity. He keeps his word and isn't boisterous. Let's see if he is worthy of both the prophecy and my attention._ "Please forgive me. This meeting was not accidental but for a purpose. I wish to challenge you to a duel. I wish it to be on August 8th, your first night there, at midnight, beside Frontier Lake, which is located on our DA campus."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. I do not even know if I passed my exams, much less knowing which dorm, if any, I am in," Alain quickly tries to explain the situation to her, "And I won't know until I check an open terminal, and even then, I will have to get them to give me and my brother, who has yet to found his information, a ride to the new Bermuda campus."

"That is no problem. I can just go to the main office computer and look it up there. I could also arrange a pick up for both of you to the cruise line in Georgia." She holds out her hand. "I will take you to the office myself to ensure you of your place on the school roster."

Alain takes her hand and points out, "You know, I can still wait. I am patient. I can duel you here if you would like that."

"No I need to do this. And I cannot duel here because I do not have my deck with me right now," she assures him as she starts guiding him to the main office.

"Why exactly do you want to duel me anyway? I am not that important," he asks loudly enough to let her hear.

As they rounded the last left and into the 3rd room on the left, she answered. "Importance is relative. What may seem like trash to another is someone else's gold. Right now, let's say I am trying to prove a couple of things to myself." And as she sat down at the desk with a serious stare and types Alain's name into the database, she says, "Let's see…yes, it is true that you passed. You have been placed into my rank, Ra Yellow. I see your written grade as well as your duel exam grade was quite high. I will just confirm that you have seen your results and also that you will need a ride to your cruise. All you need to gain the tickets is go to the Information, where your first Ra Yellow uniform is given to you, and tell them that you are also getting your tickets."

"And, what about my brother? Is he in, too? Will I be able to get his tickets for him as well?"

"I will see. Hmm…" she says as she becomes quiet as she searches for Michael. She looks up at Alain and says, "Since there is only one other Johnson listed, I am assuming that Michael Johnson is your brother." He nodded in confirmation. "It's done. He has barely passed the exam but he is in. It is logical to assume that he'll be a Slifer Red. I have also confirmed that he has seen his results and that he will need a ride there as well with you being the keeper of both his and your tickets. You two are to be here at the BJCC at 10 a.m. one week before the first day of class, on the 7th of August. Now about that challenge, will you accept it?"

"Because you have helped me, I will. Besides I never back down from a challenge, especially from a beautiful woman like yourself."

"Thank you for the compliment but I am not comfortable with them coming from a stranger."

"Well, I hope we begin to get to know each other, maybe as friends, especially if we are both Ra Yellows."

"Possibly." She stands up and guides him once again through the corridors and to the foyer. "Do not forget our duel. If you are uncomfortable with the deck you used here, use whatever deck you feel inspired to use. I bid you farewell." She leaves him with the thought of that particular request of hers. She herself had another thought. _If it is true, there is a possibility of more._

Alain stood there, simply, though the thought itself was not on the duel directly with Melei. I need to change my deck, as well as bring my soul deck, the deck that houses my dearest cards. He looks at the crowd and thinks, _Awww, crap, better get Michael and the cruise tickets at the info table._

And on he went. First, on to the info desk he went. After receiving the tickets and uniforms for both him and Michael, he went on to find his wayward brother. It did not take long to find him, knowing it had been only 15 minutes. And, not surprisingly, the lines were still long, if you call a 15 person in one spot a line. Even with a crowd this big, he found Michael with no problems.

"We gotta get back home and pack," he says grabbing Michael by the collar of his shirt and pulling him out of the line.

"Hey! Do not EVER grab my shirt like that again! And thanks to your it'll be another hour before I get back to where I was!"

"Not really. I already know we passed. A girl wanted to duel me on the new campus but, since I did not know if either of us passed, she went to the main office computer and told me. They placed me in Ra Yellow and you in Slifer Red."

"Damn the test to hell then." He shrugs and says, "I passed. That's all the matters. Now we need to tell them that we need…"

"A ride and our uniforms?" Alain interrupts, "I already have them." He gives Michael his red and white jacket. "We are to be here at the BJCC for the pickup at 10 o'clock, one week before the 14th. And from here, we go to Brunswick, Georgia, where our boat is, and then to our campus. If you do not mind, I'll hold on to the tickets. There'll be found faster on the big day if I keep them in my room."

"Alright, cool. You think Momma will bring us over here then? If not, your car could be stolen if we leave it here. It is the only car that works right now."

"She'll have to."

They left the Civic Center with smiles on their faces and worry in the heart.

"Preparations are set, sire" the lesser being says while quaking in fear.

"Good, this pleases me. I shall spare you your eternal pain for a day as your reward," ??? bellows with glee, "With them complete, our next step can now begin. Tell our human slave above to select the appropriate people for this."

"Right away, sire," it says. With the end of that order, the little thing runs away at full speed.

Alone, he says to himself, "Soon the forbidden shall be the feared."

Convincing their mother to take them wasn't easy but she knew they were stubborn like her and can't be easily swayed.

"She never did like us playing this, even though someone could make a living off of it," Alain says, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Yeah, well, she can't control our lives anymore, though she does still love us. Gotta start packing, dude. The only problem I have now is whether to bring just my deck or my other cards as well," Michael ponders for a moment.

"Just take everything. You will never know when you need them."

"Whatever," Michael indifferently says as he goes to his room to find his bags for packing.

_August 7 Birmingham, AL_

A little over a week has passed by and nothing happened of any importance with the exception of Alain and Michael meeting with Señor Martí. When they told him of their acceptions to DA and what their duels were like, he lit up like a newbie finding his first holofoil. He closed his shop early just to throw them a pizza party. The laughter, the friendship, all this and more heightened their spirits as the days rolled by to this very day, the day of their departure.

As the sun rose, their mother, already awake to go to work, woke both of her sons up to begin their journey. As one could imagine, they weren't exactly morning people. They had to go through the motions of dressing and waking up for a good while before they became fully conscious. Once or twice, Alain bumped into the door, thinking in his waking mind on how to open the door with a sleeping hand.

"You two," their mother says as they begin packing their luggage in the small trunk of Alain's Mazda, "are more important to me than my own motherly instincts. I may not like the fact that you are leaving, even to play that game, but this could lead to good things for you two and…I just want you to be happy and do well," she finishes already in tears.

"Momma, don't cry," Alain says as he hugs her, already trying to hide his tears, "we'll be alright. Tell you what, I will watch out for Michael, making sure he is alright."

"He won't need to watch out for. I can take care of myself. Momma, please, we can take care of ourselves, especially with the Tator on high heat alert," he says as he brings out his retarded self and hugs her.

"I'm a mother. I never stop worrying. Now, get in the car. I have to get to work."

They grabbed their decks and left their home, not to see it again until the next summer vacation. Another 15 minutes and they were again at BJCC. They said their goodbyes to their mother as they unpacked their luggage. And, as they watched her leave, they thought of how much they'll miss everyone, including her.

For a while, they were alone in the parking lot with only their thoughts, or just one thought in Michael's case, but as time rolled by, more students and, eventually, the many buses came by. Getting their things together and into the buses, despite the laws of physics forbidding it, took very little time, and, despite the long trip, it did not seem to take long to Alain. As the bus turned into the port, they could gain a glimpse of the boat that would take them to their new school.

The ship itself turned out to be smaller than Alain had originally thought. The darker, bottom portion with the portholes seemed to be where their rooms were and the lighter, top portion seemed to be some sort of recreational and cafeteria area with what seemed to be a duel field on its left side. All the while Alain was thinking, Not bad, not paying attention to Michael's friendly conversation with another kid.

The bus pulled off at the base of the peer. "Okay, end of the line! Get off my bus so I can have my stupid break! And do not bother me with your questions! Your luggage should have already been transferred to your rooms and/or cargo hold. That lucky driver did not have to full around with the lot of you! NOW GET OUT!" screamed the rough-looking bus driver who obviously did not like anyone, especially young folk.

30 minutes later, everyone was out of the bus with tickets in hand. Of course, Alain and Michael stood together in a never-ending line.

"Who did you talk to over there? I thought I overheard a time or two," Alain asks with sincerity.

"Oh, him? You see that short kid with brown hair and blue eyes over there?" Michael points ahead to the 5'4" kid showing his ticket to the ticket master. "His name is Ethan Crusoe and he appears to be a nice guy. He's kinda quiet, a little distant, and unfortunately, is way younger than us, around 13. He likes Water Attributes like me. He has an accent like he was Australian or something. Weird, huh?"

They took a few more steps forwards as Alain thinks, "Not really, America is a melting pot. We are all of one race or another. Hell, we're Irish and Native American, for Pete's sake. Let's get into the ship."

Once past the ticket master, Alain set out to find his and his brother's room. Coincidentally, it was listed on his ticket stub. Once their room was found, Alain surveyed it, finding 2 beds with one duel disk on one bed. _Michael must have already gotten his duel disk._ There was also a decent-sized bathroom and television.

_Wonder what's on the TV._ Picking up the remote, he turns on the television and starts to channel surf.

"…Try out Tea Gardner's institute for dancing..." _Nope_

"..You can be just as beautiful as actress/model Mai Wheeler…" _Nope_

"…Yugi Mutuo, former world champion and King of Games, is still missing after  
one week of searching…" _Nope_

"…teen idol Atticus Rhodes will be making an appearance…" _Nope_

"…humanitarian and millionaire Chazz Princeton makes history…" _Nope_

":…Syrus Truesdale, brother of the former the well-known duelist, Zane Truesdale, was found barely alive today in a Domino City gutter. He suffered from massive electrical burns…" _Nope_

_Nothing is on._ Looking around, Alain notices that Michael is missing. _Where is he? It looks like he just threw his stuff in here, took his duel disk, and left. Better go find him before he gets into trouble. _He turns off the TV and starts to leave, but as he opens the door, he sees a note taped to it. Opening it and reading it, he thinks to himself, _Remember the duel at Frontier Lake? Like I could forget that. The only problem is that I haven't decided which deck I'll use. Well, to the recreation room to find my brother._

Five minutes later, Alain finds himself in a grand hall. _Rec room, I guess._ But before he could enjoy it, he heard what sounded like Michael screaming at who seemed to be a taller brown-haired, blue-eyed man, who had the look of a self-centered prick. As Alain got nearer to them, he could filter out some of what they were saying.

"...no way, dude. There's no way they are useless. If anything, it's you who is useless. Oh, you say you're all that, that you can have any girl on the planet, I bet you can't even get yourself to stand erect."

The taller Icelandic man suddenly looks angry, restraining himself as he responds, "That's it. You better have your duel disk ready, because one way or another you will get your ass kicked."

"Look who's talkin', Limpy. Meet me outside. Once I get my duel disk, I'll be over there." Michael grasps his deck and disk and heads over to the farthest door to the left.

_That guy must have insulted Water attribute monsters._ Alain shakes his head. _Turbulent as the sea, as always. Better find out about that guy and make sure Michael doesn't go crazy._

Catching a random girl before she leaves, he asks her, "Who is that guy? The one who got my brother riled up?"

"That loud mouth was your brother? The one who bothered the hottest guy in the boat?"

"Yes, and it was probably that guy's fault. Michael only gets that way when someone makes fun of his favorite attribute. Now can you please tell me who he is?"

"Alright, alright. His name is Ian Raleigh from Reykjavik, Iceland. Now let me go see the match."

Alain followed the girl he sequestered to the ship's duel field in time to hear his brother and Ian shout, "Duel on!"

Ian's LP: 8000  
Michael's LP: 8000  
They draw five cards.

Michael: "I'll go first since you challenged." (Hand: A Legendary Ocean, Abyss Soldier, Unshaven Angler, Big Wave Small Wave, Graceful Charity) "I draw." (Giga Gagagigo) "I activate Graceful Charity. Of course, someone as limpy as you knows what it does," he says sarcastically, "I get to draw 3 cards as long as I discard 2." He draws Mother Grizzly, Gagagigo, and Gogiga Gagagigo while discarding Big Wave Small Wave and Giga Gagagigo. "I now activate the spell A Legendary Ocean." The holographics make the water around the boat rise above their head as the holographics change the steel floor to the stones of Atlantean origin. "This card, as Limpy should know, lowers the level of all Water attributes monster by one as well as give them a little 200 ATT boost. Guess I'll summon Unshaven Angler in ATT mode." An ugly big-mouthed fish with huge teeth and a head light swims to its position on the field from behind Michael. "Your turn."

Ian: (Hand: Shining Angel, Widespread Ruin, Generation Shift, Card Destruction, Diving Dragon-Excelion) "Don't worries, ladies. He's just jealous that I have a . I draw." (Lightning Vortex) "I'll set 1 s/t. I think I'll disrupt you pathetic hand with Card Destruction. We now have to discard our hands and draw the same number we lost." (Ian's new hand: Divination's Charge, Premature Burial, Divine Dragon-Excelion, Reflect Bounder) (Michael's new hand: Amphibious Bugroth MK-3, Hydrogeddon, Levia Dragon-Daedelus, Legendary Fisherman) "Hmm...This is a good hand. I activate Premature Burial. I pay 800 LP but I get to Special Summon one monster of my choice from my graveyard, and that would be my brilliant friend Shining Angel!" Lights shine thorough the holographic water as the image of a blond-haired, winged angel descends from on high. "As delighted as I am at seeing him, I believe I'll sacrifice him for another monster, my Divine Dragon-Excelion (1500/800) in ATT mode!" As if on cue, out of a brilliant ball of light breaks out what appeared to be a legendary Chinese dragon clothed in white, shining scales and gives a roar of great volume.

Michael: "Why in hell would you play that thing? A monster that's weaker than mine? Unless…"

Ian interrupts Michael's train of thought: "…it had an ability of its own? And as dumb as you are, you are right. My dragon gains one ability for every other dragon of the same name in the graveyard, up to 2 abilities. Unfortunately, they cannot accumulate. With one in the graveyard, I think I'll juice my dragon up 1000 ATT. Now, Excelion, attack his worthlessly ugly Angler." His dragon shoots itself into the sky. Once at its peak, it dives straight at the big-mouthed fish, its mouth blazing white with fire as he burns Michael's monster. Ï think I'll end my turn on that note."

Ian's LP: 7200  
Michael's LP: 7200

Michael: "I draw." Man, Maiden of the Aqua, not the cards I need. I have nothing in my hand that can help me right now, but… "Now I summon in ATT mode my Amphibious Bugroth MK-3 (1500/1300)! A roar of an engine roars from behind him as a trail of bubbles follows the hurries to its position. "Because of my field spell, my submarine gains two things: first, it gains a 200 ATT boost, and second, since my field spell doubles as Umi, my sub can attack you directly. Attack now, MK-3!" It moves itself through the water to a position behind Ian and fires a barrage of missile towards him. Ian's back arched in pain as his LP dropped. "To quote the famous Limpy, I end on that note."

Ian's LP: 5500  
Michael's LP: 7200

Ian, gritting his teeth, so angry at the thought of being attacked, bellows: "You'll pay for that. No one does that to me. NO ONE!! I draw" (Pot of Avarice) "I summon Reflect Bounder (1700/1000) in ATT mode." As the machine covered with mirrors appears, the light from Ian's dragon reflects off him, brightening the field further more. "Excelion, attack MK-3." A streak of light burst from its mouth towards the lone submarine, destroying it completely and leaving only its simulated shrapnel. "Reflect Bounder, show this insolent your power, and attack him directly!" A beam of diffused light generated from its round chest mirror heads towards Michael. "I end my turn. Nothing in your deck can defeat me."

Ian's LP: 5500  
Michael's LP: 4700

Michael, unfazed by Ian's ravings, says with confidence: "Obviously, my limpy friend, you don't know me or my deck. I draw." (Fissure) _He right for the moment, I cannot do anything to stop him now but I won't allow someone like him to win._ "I activate Fissure. This spell destroys my opponent's weakest monster, which happens to be your Reflect Bounder." A crack in the simulated Atlantean stonework forms and a large red hand comes forth from the depths, taking hold of Reflect Bounder and pulling it within. "I set one monster and end my turn."

Ian: "As I thought nothing but garbage. I draw." (Divine Dragon-Excelion) Great! The card I need to finish, or at least almost finish, that white-trash redneck and his filth of a deck. My mother's deck never lets me down. I sacrifice my dragon for another Divine Dragon-Excelion. It now achieves two abilities, which are going to be a 1000 ATT boost and the ability to attack again if it destroys a monster of yours.

Michael, with fear on his face: _Umm…I'm screwed_

Ian, seeing his fear, haughtily boasts: "Don't worry, because I got a little something more to do. I activate Divination's Charge. This card does for me what Overload Fusion does for Dark Machine Fusions, but for Light Fusions. I now take out of play the Divine Dragon on the field and the two in my graveyard to fusion summon a true supremacy, Divinus Dominatus Dragon (2500/1800) in attack mode!" The spirits of all three dragons merge together to form an even more brilliant three-headed version of itself. "Of course, I would not be so rude as to take you out without first telling you what it can do. It gets one effect for ever Divine Dragon used to fusion summon it. That means three effects. First, I choose to furnish it with a 1500 ATT boost. Next, I will permit it to attack once again in a row if it destroys one of your monsters. And since I want to damage you as much as I can, I will choose its last effect, to return all monsters removed from play to the deck and shuffle it." After returning those three dragons to the deck and shuffle it, he proceeds to the duel. "Ok, Divinus, attack his monster." A triple beam of light shot from its mouths, combining into a chromatic beam which showed no mercy to Michael's set Maiden. At the time of the attack, all Michael could think about was how in the world was he able to take this monstrosity down. "My dragon will attack again, this time at you directly. Show him no mercy!" Another great blast from this creature nearly blew Michael off the boat, only being saving by the railing. "Now I end. There is nothing you can say or do that can change the fact that you are worthless. Now finish your turn so I can finally annihilate you."

Ian's LP: 5500  
Michael's LP: 700

Michael, stepping back into his original place at the field, looks at Ian and says with fury in his eyes: "Nobody talks about my deck. My family and my friends helped me build this deck. It may not have any expensive cards in it like yours, but that does not give you the right to trash talk them. I will wipe that smirk off your face and laugh while doing. I draw." The card Alain promised me. He thinks back to the moment he got it.

_Flashback, June 31, a week before_

_"Michael, remember that card I promised? The one for those cards you gave me. Here it is," Alain says as he hands it to him, "You might have to change your deck a little to accommodate it and it is a little situational but, with the right timing, it can turn a duel around."_

"Dude, this card says I need to have other cards to use it."

Patiently, Alain responds, "I know, that is why I needed time, to search for the two you needed." Alain takes out the other two, a Gagagigo and a Gogiga Gagagigo.

"At least they are all Water attributes," shrugs Michael while placing those three cards in his deck.  


_Present_

Michael: Well, this is an emergency, so I guess I'll have to use it.

Alain, still watching from the sidelines, yells out, "I can see that card, Michael! I 've been watching and now's the right time to use it!"

Michael: "Already ahead of you, dude. Okay, Limpy, I set one moster and 1 s/t, and end my turn."

Ian, still filled with the thought of taking out Michael: "Is that all? All that time, and you only set a couple of cards. Guess, I will be able to give you the pain you deserve. Okay, ladies, Once I'm done with this , I'll want the company of a couple beautiful ladies to help me celelbrate." A few girls yelled at the comment. "I draw." (Nobleman of Crossout) "Since this is your last turn, gutter trash, and since it is the last turn, I really see no reason why I should conserve them. I activate Nobleman of Crossout. I can now choose one facedown monster on the field and take it out of play and guess what? I choose your monster." Michael watches as the simulated sword cuts through his set Mother Grizzly. "So what if I can't use my dragon's special ability, at least you have no hope to win. Divinus Dominatus Dragon, attack to win..."

Michael interrupts him: "Not so fast, Limpy, I activate a trap card, Gigas Redemption!"

Ian: "What crap is this?"

Michael: "This card will decide whether I will win or lose. The effect is very simple. I take any monster card in my graveyard that has 'Giga' in its name or is named 'Gagagigo', place them in my deck, and shuffle. I then draw as many cards from my deck equal to the amount of cards I placed in. If any of the cards I drew is one of the cards I placed in, I special summon them to the field and your cards are destroyed. If they aren't, well, my cards on the field are destroyed and the cards I drew as discarded to the graveyard. A matter of luck. Now..." After placing Gagagigo, Giga Gagagigo (1850/1000), and Gogiga Gagagigo (2950/2800) in his deck and shuffling it, he looks at Ian and says, "Decision time. I draw three cards. And guess what? I see a Unshaven Angler, a Gagagigo, and a Gogiga Gagagigo. That means I get to special summon these two and you get to lose your cards on the field, your facedown s/t and your 'true power.'" Both of Ian's cards explodes as a young lizard warrior and a much older soulless version of itself leapt from the background placing themselves in ATT mode. All the while, Ian screams as he watches his favored monster and protection leaves his field.

Ian, face twisted in an anger very similar to Michael's earlier mood: "I have no chose but to end"

Michael, laughing at his own luck: "I draw." (Giga Gagagigo) "Like you said to me, I'll end this quickly, With ALO on the field, the levels of my Water monsters are lowered by 1, so a level 5 monster would now be level 4 now. So I summon in ATT mode my Giga Gagagigo (2450/1500)." Another older version of Gagagigo appears from behind Michael, thi one geneticly altered and grafted with the bones of the fallen. "I attack with all three. I win.

Ian's LP: 0  
Michael's LP: 700

Michael leaves Ian where he stood as the holograms depicting the cards shut themelves down.

Alain, relieved that Michael won against such a self-centered egomaniac, congratulates him. "Good work, Michael. You like that card I gave you.?"  
"Dude, that was awesome. And you were right when you told about that card. It did turn my duel around. That duel made me hungry. You want some dinner? I hear they have some fried chicken tonight, almost as good as KFC chicken."

"You know I cannot resist a chicken dinner. Let's hurry. Just watching you made my appetite huge."

And they left for the dining hall where their dinners awaited them. After having a couple of huge helpings of chicken and mashed potatoes, all the while Michael screaming about the fact that Alain was eating Tator's relatives, both Alian and Michael for their rooms, eager to sleep the rest of the night, wanting to wake up the next morning rested and ready for the their arrival at Exodus Island.

Melei, in her room aboard the boat stares at the starry sky. She thinks of the upcoming duel. My deck is ready. My father gave me the principle card in my deck with the warning not to use it until the time had come. She looks at her deck and says, "And none shall pass if you are judged unworthy."\

_to be continued..._

Cards made up this chapter

Divination's Charge  
Spell  
Remove from play monsters from the field or graveyard which are listed on a Light Fusion monster and Special Summon that monster. This counts as a Fusion Summon.

Divinus Dominatus Dragon  
Fusion/Light/Dragon  
Lv9/2500/1800  
Divine Dragon-Excelion + any number of other Divine Dragon-Excelion  
When this monster is fusion summoned, it gets one of the following abilities for each "Divine Dragon-Excelion" used to fusion summon this monster. These effects do not accumulate.  
1) increase the attack of this card by 1500  
2) when this card destroys a monster as a result of battle, inflict damage to your opponent's LP equal to the original attack of the destroyed monster.  
3) if a monster is destroyed as a result of battle by this card, this card can attack once more in a row  
4) return all cards removed from play to the owner's deck and shuffle it

Gigas Redemption  
Trap  
This card cannot be activated until your opponen't Battle Phase and the controller of this card has monster with "Giga" in its name or is named "Gagagigo." Place each card in your deck and shuffle it. Then draw cards equal to the number of cards returned to the deck. If any of the drawn cards were one of these cards, destroy all you oppnent's cards and Special Summon those cards to the field. If not, all cards on your side are destroyed and the drawn cards are discarded to the graveyard.

Note: Divinus Dominatus is Latin for "divine domination." Thought it was approppriate for it. And I would still like to know if I should make new hero monsters. It so, my ideas towards them will lead to a new subtype, like Union, Spirit, and Toon.


	3. Chapter 3

**Yugioh! Future Conflicts**

_Chapter 3 "A Door Broken"_

The night sky sings of tranquility, lulling all to sleep. A calm sea, black as coal, reflecting only the stars above, surrounds a voyaging boat. It's passengers, Alain and Michael especially, are all asleep on board, all experiencing the rigors of the dream world with only a few late night sleepers and a few navigators awake.

One of them happened to be Nicholas Nahone. Nicholas, in one of the most extravagant rooms on board, was not in a good mood, not that he ever was in one in his life. He had seen a duel, the first duel of the day in fact, of which an Obelisk Blue member had been beaten by a Slifer Red. Talking to his reflection in the mirror, he tries to calm himself down. "How could that have happened? That dragon fusion had a power that rivaled my own Gatlin Dragon, and, to be stopped by a lucksacked, noob trap card, is utterly humiliating!" He lets out a growl of frustration, clenched fist at his sides. "That Slifer shitface should not have even passed the entrance exams much less beat an Obelisk, a dumb one at that. I damn well am going to change that once I have..."

"...the power he promised you?" something in the rooms interrupts.

Looking around, surprised more than confused, "Okay, fucker, where the hell are you this time?"

???? shrieks in terrifying laughter, "Have you looked in a mirror lately?"

"Save it," says Nicholas in annoyance, "What is it you want? Am I getting it now?"

"The master will give you it when he feels like it. What my master wants is for you to gather certain people to help find the five keys."

"And how am I going to find these asses?"

"They'll find you and give you the sign."

"I'd better get what is rightfully mine. I am not a babysitter."

With a look of sincerity??? says, "You'll get what you truly deserve."

In an Obelisk Blue girls' dorm room, a guy leaves with a smile on your face. "That was fun. I'll make sure that I will come back for more."

??? peaks through her dorm room door and says, "You give me what I want and I will give you what you want."

"Whatever you say. I'll get on it right away," he says, leaving his companion with only one thought in her head.

"Men are nothing if not controllable," she says, not realizing tht was the very thought she had.

Another student opens the door in front of her, unsurprised at the site of what just happened. "Another notch on your belt, huh, Valencia? Duel Queen of Duel Academy, my ass. More like village whore."

Valencia Santiago stood there at the mention of the honorary title, more for show than not. The woman from the state of Campeche in Mexico, more specifically Cancun, was too much of an actress to allow her neighbor the satisfaction of knowing her true thoughts. This 5'8", gorgeously tanned, black-haired, deep brown-eyed beauty loved the thought of getting any man or thing she wanted; it was her wild passion that men loved about her, and it was her key to getting the money she sought to gamble and party, not to mention her large debt back home, but she never really thought of that. She responds, her faced twisted in pseudo-anger, "Shut the hell up, Vladmira! You're just jealous that I can have anything I want, especially with men. Your royal blood line, dead as it is, could never get then what I can get now." She shuts her door as she shouts that. _That should rile her up a bit._ Picking up the brush on her dresser table, she starts straightening out her hair.

Suddenly, the reflection of her mirror speaks, "It's a shame not all men are swayed by your charm."

"What the fuck?! I must have had too much to drink tonight. I could have sworn my mirror spoke," she says, surprised at the sight.

"That may be true but that doesn't stop the fact that not all men are taken by you," her reflection says in retort.

"What the hell are you talking about?! There's not a man..." she fumbles, trying to defend herself.

"Lies," it interrupts, "Try telling that to your bookies in Mexico."

"How dare you! I am the Duel Queen and I get what..."

"More lies. My master has been watching you very carefully and knows everything to know about you. He knows of your overwhelmingly enormous gambling debt and that you can never go home in fear of death."

"But, but...how did anyone know? No one should," the look of desperation now on her face.

"That does not matter. He is willing to give you everything your heart desires...but with one condition."

"What is it? I will do anything to get more money."

"Pledge your services to the master."

"Fuck, yeah, I will!"

"Place your hand on the face of this mirror and you will receive the sign of your allegiance. After that, go find Nicholas Nahone and show it to him. He'll tell you what you must do." And it leaves, her original reflection remaining.

Valencia puts her hand to the face. Her hand now glows a dark aura. _Finally, all the money of my dreams. At least I know where Nick's room is, but he won't be back until tomorrow. For now, the pleasures of sleep await me._ And she slept the sleep of kings.

Vladmira Jonesova watched as Valencia slammed the door in front of her. _Peasant slut. If my Russian forefathers did not haven't screwed up, I would not have to mess with her right now. _This was a common thought for the 5'6", mysterious, black-haired, Blue-eyed Russian heir to the now dead throne. Though she revered her ancestor Piotr Rasputin, she hated him for losing his chance at power. _What did my ancestor Anastasia ever seen in him anyway?_

In a wall mirror ahead of her, an unexpected voice answered, "Probably just wanted to get laid."

After a minute of initial shock, she recuperated and retorted, "Who are you to say such things about my family?"

"A servant of someone who can restore your family's power, of course. But, hey, if you do not want it…"

Curious, but cautious, she asks, "Wait, wait. How? and why?"

"My master can do all things. Why he'll give you your dreams will be revealed later, if you pledge your loyalty to him."

"For my kingdom to be reborn, I will do it." she quickly answers, desperate for her dream.

Place your hand on this mirror and receive the sign. Once given, show it to Nicholas Nahone. He'll give you your next instructions." The strange reflection leaves as Vladmira touches the face of the wall mirror. Though there was a dark aura around her arm, she did not seem concerned about it, only the mark on her arm caught her attention. Her only thoughts were of those things she thought she deserved. And to that, she waited for tomorrow, the day she'll search for Nicholas.

It was midnight on Exodus Isle and it already had its first participant in its gyms, a Ra Yellow by the name of Andrew Pollock. In his short time since his move from Greece, he had found a reputation for being a muscle-bound bully, of both teacher and student alike. The Greek god, as the girls call him, couldn't help but believe that only the strong should survive and rule. Of course, being at a tall 6'0" with brown hair and eyes, no one can normally overpower him enough to make a point. Either that or he uses his brain more, and that was a statistical impossibility.

"One…two…three…four…five…" he counts as he begins his second set of bench pressing. With his arms already warmed up, these took no longer than twenty minutes or so. "Strength is what counts around here; without it, my deck would not be built and the weak would not know their place beneath out feat. Stupid pathetic…"

A voice coming from Andrew's shadow interrupted his train of thought, surprisingly not shocking him, "Marxist to the core, as always. What if I could tell you that my master wants to give you the power to destroy the weak exactly the way you dream?"

Not giving it another thought, he blurts, "Really? Alright, sure, why not?"

"Place your hand at the head of your shadow and then find Nicholas Nahone to begin your journey to the destruction of the weak..." Quiet once again consumes the gym as Andrew, without a thought against it, touches his own shadow, not noticing the aura around his hand.

"Damn that Slifer shit face! I did everything as I should have. I played as I normally do but I still lost!" Ian Raleigh talks to himself, still fuming over the loss to Michael Johnson. Even the company of the women on board the boat could not console him. "That bastard better watch his back. The he turns his back on me, I'll kill him."

_Lies and you know it_, a voice in Ian's head speaks up, _the school won't allow you to even touch him much less fight or kill him. But, if you pledge your eternal soul to the all-devourer, he'll give you the strength to exact you revenge._

Too full of anger to notice that he was talking to himself, he shouts, "I'll do anything to show that shit head bastard his place!" An aura of indescript light surrounds him, "On your palm i a sign, find and show this to Nicholas Nahone, who is on this boat. He'll give you your next instructions." With that, the voice leaves his head, Ian's mind now an echoing abyss.

Eyes filled with power and insanity, "Hehehe..." Ian now leaves his room, filled with purpose and clinical insanity.

"Sire, it is done," the lesser being says, pleased at the thought of finishing his task.

????? responds, "Good. After our newfound army is gathered, give them their transportation and destination to the first key."

"Right away, my liege," it answers, leaving once again to fulfill the task set out for him.

"And it begins. My empire will rise and I shall once again be at my rightful place," said ????? in the silence of this of this dark realm.

The light of a new day seeps through the windows of the passengers' rooms. The smells from the galleys above lofted below decks, filling the hallways with the glorious smells of bacon, eggs, sausage, and chicken, and for drink, of course, strong iced tea or coffee. Alain and Michael lay in their comfortable beds. Michel was still snoring loudly, deeply involved in his own dreams. Alain, on the other hand, though still in his bed, was wide awake. _Strange dream, I wish I could remember the details. All I can remember was running from something, something I knew, and some feelings of love. Dang it, I could never remember my dreams very well. I had better get out of bed. I believe we're almost there._

Alain shoves his covers off and heads to the showers to freshen up. About twenty minutes later, he comes out to find Michael up and waiting for the bathroom.

"I was about to get you up," Alain says in shock of him being awake early. "What made you get up?"

"I smelled bacon and eggs," Michael says groggily and with a cracked voice. "Move so I can get my shower."

Alain moves as Michael steps into the bathroom and shuts the bathroom door behind him. His room now a mess, Alain starts gathering the little stuff he brought along with him. While cleaning he comes across a very unique and special box engraved with a clock and his name. _Ahh...my soul deck, as my Daddy calls it. Before he and Momma divorced, Daddy gave them to me for my 10th birthday. He said that, since I liked reading alternative history and time traveling stories, still do in fact,. I might like them and I did. I had just started playing this game and did not yet have a good deck to use. Even though I saw them, Daddy told me not to play them just yet, had to wait until their name was called before I could officially play them. And I have waited, almost 11 years now, to use them. Wish I knew when though._ He takes his treasured cards and places them in his backpack.

Michael, who took about twenty minutes as well, promptly comes out of the bathroom, drying and dressed, declares with a certainty, "Dude, after I get my stuff together, we've gotta get somethin' to eat."

"I know, Michael, that's why I clean my stuff already, so we wouldn't have to wait. From the time on our ticket stubs, we have about an hour and a half to eat if we leave now."

"Well, let me pack. You go ahead and find us a good seat." Michael starts cleaning up his clothes and other stuff as Alain leaves.

Alain had already finished his first helpings of bacon, eggs and chicken biscuits before he saw Michael in the dining hall. Of course, upon seeing the scraps on Alain's plate, Michael ran for the buffet line with Alain close behind for seconds. After another thirty minutes and another couple of helpings, they patted their stomach in satisfaction and got up to see their new home and campus, Exodus Isle, come up.

"Looks nice, huh?" Alain asks.

"Dude, no kiddin', kinda reminds me of home with all those trees." Michael says.

"I've got the feeling this'll be an interesting year."

Michael doesn't respond to that comment, content to watch the island coming closer over the hour. The port they were boarding in was much smaller than the one they started in but no one complained about that, just the way they would get their carryons off the boat and to their new rooms. Groans and grunts aside, they are marveled at the site of the campus as they walked from the boat to the new main buildings. The forests behind the three main buildings screamed leisure walks. The lakes, as well as the big, luxurious Obelisk Blue boys' and girls' dorms, were a testament of the greatness they might achieve through hard work. Even the lake seen through the sparse trees to the right seemed serene. As they walk down the beaten path, they see Dr. Vivian Crichton appears from the behind with the new students students.

She shouts above the racket being created by the students, "Calm down, children, calm down!" The students little by little settle down. After a few minutes more, she continues, "Thank you and welcome to Exodus Isle, where your journey begins. I am Dr. Vivian Crichton, as you all know. To my right is Valencia Santiago, our resident Duel Queen and the guide to all the new girl students. To the left is Nicholas Nahone. Many have seen him in the Duel Academy recruitment exams as an observer, as well as the boat that brought all of you here. He is the best in terms of grades and duels, and he will be the guid to all the new men here. These two will take you to your new dorms. But, before you go, I will tell you where everything is. First, the personal effects you brought, clothes and luggage, were already take out of the cargo hold and will be more than likely at your dorms now, quite possibly in your rooms. They lakes you just passed are called Alegre and Amistad lakes. It is there where the entire student body meets. The buildings ahead are the administration buildings and classrooms. The forests that surround the school, though a bit thicker than they seem, are called Sanctity Wood. The nearest island, Omegas Isle, is a forbidden area. No one is allowed there without a unanimous decision from the entire faculty. You guys have a week to explore the island. Those who have a way on or off the island have permission to do so with the condition of coming back before the first day of classes. Failure to do so is subject to detention or expulsion. Good luck to you all and goodbye." Crichton leaves the group, heading toward the admin office.

Before the crowd got restless and unruly, Nicholas holds out his hands and shouts, "For all who did not hear, I am Nicholas Nahone and this is Valencia Santiago. You all are to do everything we tell you from now on, regardless of the time or place. If you do not, we have enough powerful friends to kick your asses out of the school, or, if we feel like it, we can have a decisive duel to determine whether or not you have a right here. We do not have to know you. You are nothing but pawns to us. You only have to know us and our wants. Now, behind us are the OB dorms, girls to the left, and boys on the right. Any assigned there are to go there now. I will lead only OB's."

The group diminishes as newly-assigned OB's go to the dorms ahead. Alain could not help thinking about what had occurred. _There's no way I'll do as that asshole says, even the girls here will have a tough time making me do anything I do not want to do. Well, speak of the devil, look who is coming._ It seemed that the Duel Queen was coming to him.

"Hi, I'm Valencia," she holds out her hand for a handshake...

"Hello, I'm Alain," Alain responds in kind,

"Oh, I know you, the rumors have spread her, you're the one who beat Ms. Crichton."

"That would be me."

"Well, here, comes, Nick. Nice to meet you, Alain," she touches his left arm while drawing herself much, much closer, "If you ever need me to do something, don't be hesitant to come to my room and ask, at any time." She leaves, thinking one thing. _He'll be mine by the end of the week. And the money he could earn me would make me a good bit._

Alain, on the other hand, thought otherwise. _I will not contest the fact that she is extremely beautiful and sexy, but I can tell she's not my type, especially for my first time from the subtle tones of her voice. It's way too likely that's she's waaaaaay too easy, too sexually active. Lord knows I try to keep my urges until my honeymoon._

Nicholas, now at the front of the group, continues with the rest of his dialogue, "The rest of you follow me." Nicholas leads, following a carved out path in Sanctity Wood to the right of where they were. Once through the thin line of trees, they found a clearing. One could just sit there, right beside that lake, for hours just minding yourself in total tranquility. Of course, the Ra Yellow dorms ahead, along the shores of the lake they were trailing, almost ruined it but no one could complain since it was a good dorm to be in.

"Listen up! I am not going to say this again. Across the shores of Frontier Lake, this lake right here, are the Ra Yellow dorms. Past them are a thin line of trees and the shorelines of the other side of our island. Any Slifer shitheads who need to find their poor excuse of a dorm can take a left while following that shore. Valencia and I have better things to do than chauffeur wanna-be duelists." Nicholas grabbed Valencia by the arm and went back through the forest."

Michael, who had to restrain himself for that period, suddenly lets out what was once on his mind, "Jerk off! The moment I get my chance, I'm gonna give him what's on my mind. Now that Duel Queen, I'll do anything to d……help her out!" Michael catches himself just before he let slip out exactly what was on mind.

Alain nods in agreement to the first statement, "Yeah, well, don't like the dude myself. You can have that beautiful Latina; I do not think she's my type. Now if you want my help, I suggest we get moving. I gotta get to my room and check it out."

"Alright, dude, just sayin'," Michael exasperates.

Even from the distance, the Ra Yellow dorms were easy to see, being two soft yellow, three-story buildings against the green surroundings. _Not bad, not bad at all. Not to mention convenient, since that lake there is where we are going to duel, me and Melei. Hey! There's Raj and Gonzalo. I bet they'll know where my room is._

Though very busy with the room rosters, they did notice the pair of brothers.

"Hey, man! Nice to see you made it," Gonzalo says.

"Wouldn't have missed the opportunity and you know," Alain says in response. "Besides, dude, who else would be the best but us?" Michael adds.

Raj comments on that, "We'll see. Okay, Alain, you seem to have room 2H on the second floor. Your stuff should already be there," taking out a key,"and here's your room key."

"Thanks," grabbing the keys, "Once I'm settled and have taken my brother to his dorm, I believe I'll prepare for my duel."

Gonzalo, surprised at the remark, inquires, "You already have a duel? This soon?"

"Yeah, another Ra Yellow challenged me before I came. Her name is Cheung Melei. You know her?"

"Melei? Asked you to duel, voluntarily?" exclaims Raj, obvious astonishment on his face.

"You have no idea how lucky you are, Alano. Melei is famous around here, as little time as we have had, for not dueling often, if at all. You are part of a lucky few. I would love to this in action!"

"You're not kidding. I heard she is nearly undefeated where she comes from," Raj agrees.

"Nearly undefeated, huh? Maybe I should try out my…Never mind, well, if you guys want, the duel is on the shore of Frontier Lake at midnight," Alain points over to the nearby lake.

"Oh, we'll be there," Raj says, already planning out that detail.

Along with Michael, Alain heads towards his room. Up a flight of stairs, taking a couple of lefts, Michael suddenly blurts out a question, "You mind if I come to that duel with a friend? That Ethan Crusoe kid seems to be a cool guy."

Facing the door of the new room, Alain thinks about it and answers, "If you don't mind being up that late. We did lose an hour or two getting here."

"I won't mind."

Alain opens the door to his room to find a nice semi-large room decorated with a queen-sized bed, a desk for homework, a computer, and what appeared like his clothes. Putting the backpack on the foot of the bed, Alain merely pronounces, "Kinda reminds me of a hotel room, but with better looking drapes."

"Whatever. Can we go on already?" I gotta unpack my stuff. Either that or you let me sleep here."

"Nuh-uh, not unless there is an emergency," says Alain while shaking his head, "You and me, sleeping in the same room, it'd be a catastrophe waiting to happen. You can't even stand my snoring and I can't stand the fact that you turn on the TV to go to sleep. If you are in such a hurry, we'll go now." Locking his door behind him, Alain and Michael walk out of the dorm towards the slender line of trees on their left and to the shore.

"Didn't that jerk off say we go to the left?" Michael asks, unsure of his sense of direction.

"Yeah, I believe so," Alain responds, nodding.

And so, they set off on the left, following the shoreline. They walked for what seemed like ten minutes, seeing only trees on the left. They did happen to see a small port about two or three minutes into the journey but with a metal link chain, keeping the small faded green fishing there and a small sign forbidding anyone to use it. They thought it best to go on ahead, or more specifically, Alain just dragged his stubborn little brother away. At the end of their little expedition for the Slifer dorms, they see them ahead. To the naked eye, the red-roof building looked like a two-story, badly painted motel that one would go to with a prostitute. Upon closer inspection, they found it much the same but with the sound of bees nearby.

Looking at his brother, Alain gently says, "I know it doesn't look like much, but at least it is a place to stay. If you want any dinner, feel free to come over to my place and I'll see if we can share a meal. Okay?"

"Oh, alright, but dude, this is crap. We got to do something about this soon."

"I'll see if I can find help to fix this. Now, it's almost time for dinner, I think. Go find your room, have dinner, and meat you headmaster. I've gotta do the same. And do NOT forget the duel at midnight. I know how you are about your sleep."

"Okay, fine, Maybe I'll find Ethan there."

Alain turns back the way he came, his thought on the upcoming preparation. _To be honest, I really dunno about what to do about this duel. I could use my defense deck or my Spellcaster deck. They are well groomed for the unexpected but maybe I should use my lockdown deck, just in case. That one always had more in common with my personality. Guess I'll go with that one. Okay, where exactly am I?_ Alain looks around to see the trees surrounding him. _How exactly did I get here? I walked straight the entire way. I think I remember seeing the small port, too. I might be a little lost but not as lost as I usually can be._ His heart thumps hard and fast at the thought of being lost. A rustle through the leaves, though surprising to him, makes him inquisitive. _Probably not a good idea to go towards the sound, but it'll bug me all day if I do not._ Carefully, Alain steps over, step by step, not knowing what may come. Little by little, he hears voices, familiar voices. _Hey! That sounds like that jerk-off Nicholas. Wonder what he's doing here._ As Alain creeps closer, he begins to see Nicholas and what appeared like others: Valencia, Ian Raleigh with a look of possible insanity, another girl, and another guy. Up as far as he could, Alain listened in to their conversation.

"You all know what to do and where to go now," Nicholas says.

"Wait a goddamn minute," Valencia says in incomprehension, "you're telling me, Vladmira, Ian, and Andrew that we have to depart for Argentina? All because some asshole wants us to find some keys? You are fucking out of you mind!" The other three nodding in agreement.

"Don't talk to me like that, bitch! I told you what was said to me. Now tomorrow, our arranged transportation will come and take us to the airport and then to Argentina. Now go and get ready."

Grumbling in complaint, Valencia and the others reluctantly walk off. Nicholas, proud of irritating his companions, leaves in another direction, mumbling something unreadable into a mirror.

Alain, happy at the thought of him leaving, sits there absorbing the information. _This'll make Michael's day. Certainly makes mine. Now let's go find that shore._

Alain was right about not being as lost as he normally gets. After backtracking for a couple of minutes, he found himself at the small port. For no longer that a couple more minutes, he arrives at his dorm, fortunately with just enough time to freshen up and dress in his formal Ra Yellow uniform.

Night time came and the sounds of students talking filled the dining hall as Alain reaches his destination. Raj and Gonzalo, both beckoning him to come, was only partially inside.

"You made it, man," Gonzalo with relief in his voice. "Almost didn't think you'd come."

"I had an errand to run and got a little lost. No worries."

Raj responds to the statement, "that's alright. Let's see if we can find the headmaster. He wants you to meet him, and once done with that, I think we'll be allowed to eat." Spotting the headmaster at the end of the hall, Alain follows both of them to the person to whom runs his new home. As Alain stands behind him, he saw that he was a lot taller than he at the other end, a good foot taller.

Raj introduces him, "I present to you our dorm headmaster, Mr. José Martí." As Raj finishes, the dorm headmaster turns around, revealing the old friend and owner of Alain's old card shop.

"Ahh……Alano, you're here. ¿Cómo te va¿Bien?"

"¡Qué sorpresa! Estoy bien, pero un poquito confundido. How'd you get here? Aren't you supposed to be in Alabama minding the store?" Confusion covered his face at the sight of him.

Martí, smiling, says, "I had applied a while back, sometime last year back when I was having money problems. Though I got through my problems, I never retracted my application. When I got the letter in the mail, I packed up and came here. That was all about a couple weeks ago. I thought that, since I found out about this, it might be a nice surprise for you and your brother, to have someone from home watching over you. Don't worry, the shop itself is now being watched over by the wife and Santiago, so everything is safe now."

Gonzalo, unbelieving the sight of Alain and their headmaster talking like old pals, interrupts, "You two know each other?"

Alain answers before Martí, "Yeah, the card shop owner in my neighborhood. Wait until you guys get a taste of his jalapeño buffalo wings," Alain pats his stomach. "Very good but can literally burn the hairs of your throat." He faces Martí. "Are we having them tonight?"

"No, not until the first night of classes."

"Cool, I'll bring along Michael. He always did like the wings even with the gut wrenching fire."

Raj, back in the sidelines, interjects, "Mr. Martí, I believe we can start now."

"Alano, it's real good to see you. Hasta pronto." Martí and Alain separates , both to their assigned seats, Martí at the head and Alain at the back end. _Wonder what kind of deck Señor Martí has. To be our headmaster, it'll have to be unique, por lo tanto, _Alain thinks as he walks down to his seat.

The rest of his night went by flawlessly. Dinner was a nicely seasoned beef tips and rice with gravy available for those who would want it, and, as much as he enjoyed it, Alain still stressed over the upcoming duel. About halfway through the night, long after dinner but still hours away he began to realize that he was hyperventilating, with his short breaths and fast paced heart. _Oh crap. This has never happened before a duel. I'll pass out if I do not calm down. God, help me overcome my feelings of anxiety_. He gazes out his room window upon the lake of which will be his battleground.The image of it calms his soul. As he looks closer, he finds his brother, his friend Ethan, Raj, and Gonzalo, all waiting for him. _Michael's here early?! Miracles happen everyday. Wait..._ Alain looks at his watch and sees that it is indeed much later than it should be, 11:45 p.m. How did that happen? Time is relative, I know, but this is ridiculous. Ridiculous or not, I gotta go down there. His deck, already chosen through much difficulty, and duel disk in hand, he runs out to meet his next challenge. As the door closes, the box of which had his soul deck started ticking and the engraved hands of the clock began to countdown.

The dark of night fills the island's skies, to be only interrupted by the light of the lampposts. An eerie quit surrounds the field in between the Ra Yellow's dorms and the lake, as four men wait for Melei to come.

"When is that girl going to get here? I do have to get some sleep, you know," Michael says, impatient as always.

"Didn't you say she'd come at midnight?" Ethan says, "We can be patient for a few minutes. While we wait, you think you could ask your brother to look at my deck?"

"Let's ask then," Michael looks at his brother, obviously worn ragged by the look of his face but otherwise ready for the duel, and bluntly asks, "Hey, Alain! You think you could give Ethan here a few pointers about his deck?"

Alains turns around and responds, "You think next time, Michael, that you could ask nicely? And yes, I'll see if I can help."

Ethan hands his deck over to Alain and simply says, "It's a Return deck using the effect of Lekunga."

Alain carefully inspects each card as quickly as possible, conscious of the fragility of those worn out cards. Finishing the inspection, he looks at Ethan and says, "Nice idea. The problems I see are that: Number 1, I don't see enough discarding effects, though too much is pushing it. If you had a few more ways to get monsters into the graveyard , like recruiter monster Mother Grizzly, you'll have more options for removing. Regulation of the Tribe would be good here, as a way of defense as well as a way to clear the field for your win condition; Number 2, you do not have enough monster removal. I suggest using Chaos End as an unusual card to offset your opponent; Number 3, I see only one card that'll bring back your monster removed from the Graveyard, Return from the Different Dimension." Alain looks up to see Melei coming, dressed in the formal Ra Yellow dress uniform along with her duel disk. "Ethan, come and see me tomorrow, and together we'll give your deck a good improvement. Right now, I have someone to due;." He carefully returns these cards back to the Australian teen." Facing Melei, he says, "You must have had the same type of event like I did, an orientation dinner. Either way, you look beautiful."

Blushing too slightly to notice, Melei stops some distance away, in a ready stance. "Thank you, but, as I had said before, I am neither comfortable not deserving of compliments. Please tell your friends to step aside so that we may duel."

"I only give out compliments when I know they are deserved but, as you wish," Alain looks back and says to his four man group, "Raj, Gonzalo, Michael, Ethan, would y'all move back further?" After they each moved back a little, Alain continues, "Thanks you guys. Okay, Melei, I know I asked this once before but I must ask again. Why duel me? Of all people, I am but an average duelist at best."

"If you truly want to know, you'll have to defeat me in the duel."

"Okay, let's have some fun then," he says as he activated his duel disk, "I use this deck to shine the light on the silent and give them their due.."

With a look of surprise, Melei thinks, _Could it be...?_ "Let's begin, shall we?"

Alain's LP: 8000

Melei's LP: 8000

They both draw 5 cards.

Alain: "I believe that in this occasion that ladies are first."

Melei: "Thank you. I draw." (Hand: Giant Rat, Banisher of the Light, D.D. Survivor, Smashing Ground, Disciple of the Forbidden Spell, Threatening Roar) "I'll summon Giant Rat (1400/1450) in attack mode." A rat, donned with gray fur, claws as sharp as its big teeth, and glowing red eyes appeared, hunching and standing on its hind legs. With one look, one could tell it wanted to come and scavenge the meat off your bones. "I'll set one s/t and end."

Alain: "Okay, I draw." (Hand: Shining Angel, The Graveyard from the Fourth Dimension, Level Up!, Silent Swordsman Lv3, Cyber Dragon, Sakuretsu Armor) _I wish I had an idea of what deck she uses. This deck can stop most decks but, even then, I usually have a small idea of what they use. Well in for a penny, in for a pound. _"When I have no monsters on the field while you have some, I can special summon this card without sacrifice. I now bring out Cyber Dragon (2100/1000) in attack mode!" Suddenly, with a roar, a mechanized serpent appears, posed to strikeat a moment's notice. " I also set 1 s/t., and, since my Cyber Dragon was a Special Summon, I can still Normal Summon. So I call forth my Shining Angel (1400/800) in attack mode!" A light from the sky falls to the earth, revealing, not a meteor, but an angel robed with white vestments. "I think I'll do something unconventional. Shining Angel, attack Giant Rat!" The divine angel flaps it wings, thrusting its fist towards the rodent. The rat jumps, as well, readying its claws for its meal. Both collided, a battle started, now ended.

Raj, on the sidelines, confused at the order, blurts out, "Why would he do that? Cyber Dragon more easily. that way he could use the Angel to attack whatever came after.:

Ethan, quiet since the beginning, says, "They are both recruiters. They replace themselves."

"You're right. By replacing them, Alain could possibly find out what Melei has in mind."

Melei grabs her deck and searches her deck: "As we both know, Giant Rat allows me to Special summon one EARTH Attribute monster in attack mode that has an attack of 1500 or less, if he was destroyed in battle."

Alain, also grabbing his deck, says in response: "I do know, but I also get a monstere of 1500 or less, though not of EARTH but of LIGHT." Finding what he wanted, he calls out, "I now summon Silent Magician Lv4 (1000/1000)!" A tornado of wind and particles of light swirls. A seal of light at the base glows as a child, clothed in a white ankle-long vest with matching hat and hair and a look of seriousness, ascends carrying a small white staff with a blue orb pulsing of power.

Melei chose hoer monster and, with equal vigor, calls out: My monster of choice is Castle Gate (0/24000)!" A thick fog develops and revolves on her side of the field. A golem, extremely large in size with red-painted, gold trimmed doors as its body , bursts from the ground and fog. It's transition from the fog completed, the massive stone golem's opens its right door partially.

Gonzalo looks in awe at the sight of this golem. "Man, that is one seriously large monster but why bring out such a weak monster in attack mode when it can be better used in defense?"

"Because," Raj points out, "it has an effect that can only be activated when in attack. For one, it cannot be destroyed in battle. This effect is always active no matter what mode it's in. Second of all, each turn, if it is in attack mode, she can sacrifice one monster whose level is 5 or lower to do damage equal to the monster's original attack strength."

Michael and Ethan listened with interest in their eyes. They all cheer Alain on.

Alain, listening to Raj's explanation, smiled: "I see that monster as a testament of both of us, something whose stubborn nature will prohibit any to pass. Let's see if I am that monster's challenge. Cyber Dragon and Silent Magician Lv4, attack that Castle Gate!"A violent burst of hot fire stream out of the metal serpent's mouth, combining with the stream of light that came from the child mage's staff to make a majestic balanced of fire and light. It hits the doors of the golem creature, the fluttery fire deflects off the doors. Anyone near jumped away to avoid being hit with the simulated deflections. "Ok, I think I'll activate Level Up! By sacrificing one monster with "LV" as part of it's name, I can Special Summon one monster stated in it's text from my hand or deck, regardless of summoning requirements." The image of the kid mage disintegrates into small balls of dimming light from the legs up. At the last second, the seriousness of his face became a smile of mischievousness. "I now bring out Silent Magician Lv8 (3500/1000) in attack mode!" A hurricane of light flurries forms around Alain, the strong wind beneath him. Another seal of light, much bigger that the last, descends from the sky. As it crossed Alain's line of sight, the seal diminishes, the light infused forming the shape of the kid mage's older, adult self. It still held the staff of its childhood, but its one white coat now longer, its once short hair now longer and pointed towards the back, the eyes of the old apprentice not the eyes of a wizened master of magic. "My new magician is now immune to all your spells. With this, I'll end.

Melei's LP: 4900

Alain's LP: 8000

Melei: "I draw." (Spirit Barrier) _Another part of the prophecy has now come true. All the evidence points to him._ "I set 1 s/t and summon Disciple of the Forbidden Spell (1700/1000) in attack mode." A teenager holding a thick bow and arrow streaks into view from the forest, his wily blond hair covered in leaves and teal suit a demonstration of his rebellion. "I activate my Castle Gate's ability. I sacrifice my Disciple to deal damage to you equal to its attack." The golem opens its doors to the disciple as he runs in. Out of it came a translucent image of him with outstretched fists, striking Alain square on the jaw, knocking Alain back a foot. "I end"

Melei's LP: 4900

Alain's LP: 6300

Alain picks himself off the ground and says: "Hmm...I see what you are doing. An untraditional Burn. I like it. I hate to have to beat it though. Such a great example of originality."

Melei, taken back by the compliment, says only two words: "Thank you." _I really think he's sincere. The very look in his eyes proclaims only the truth. But I cannot afford to allow him that kind of attention. I must wait until the personal prophecy given to me comes true. I still remember those words clearly. "Warmth in my soul will be realized when the future meets the present."_

Alain notices the face of a thinking mind and continues: "Ok, I draw." (Nimble Momonga) _This is the only way I'll see my LP again._ "I set one monster facedown and attacks Castle Gate with my Silent Magician." A white fury hurtles towards the massive golem.

Melei, with a flick of her wrist reveals her Spirit Barrier. A semi-globe of pink color surrounds Melei's field.

Alain: "Aww...crap. Now you don't receive battle damage as long as you have a monster on the field. With Castle Gate on the field that means it will be harder now to win. I guess I'll end."

Michael, though not concentrating on the duel per se, comes to the realization, "She's going to burn him away. That's low, dude."

Raj counters him, "No, it's brilliant. With that sort of lock, she has now taken the control."

Alain, still within hearing range, thinks: _He's right about the burning but I agree with Raj's comment. My deck can lockout most people's decks from half its cards, but this is not a normal deck. Maybe I should have stuck with Needle Burn. At least it could do effect damage even without the battle damage._

Melei, unfazed and unconcerned by the conversation, resumes: "I draw." (Mistobody) "I summon D. D. Survivor (1800/200) in attack mode." Out from the distance appears a woman vested in torn, gray coveralls, further covered by tattered yellow rags. As she neared, her face had the look of sheer determination. "I now activate Smashing Ground. Now the monster with the highest defense on your field is destroyed, but with two defenses the same, I get to choose. I choose to destroy your Cyber Dragon." A large first drives into the mechanical serpent, any leftover pieces of simulated metal crushed down flat. _I do not and will not attack. My decks are designed to test each person's to think above what they know and normally would do. A true challenge._ "I end."

Alain, looks on the field and sees her facedown. Skeptical of it, he renews his efforts to duel: "I draw." (Level Up!)

Melei, once again activates a card: "I activate a trap card, Threatening Roar. Now you cannot conduct your Battle Phase."

Alain: "I wasn't going to attack, too skeptical of it. I'll summon Silent Swordsmen Lv3 (1000/1000) in attack mode." A field of sparkles materializes, coalescing into the visage of a golden-haired child wearing a black trench coat and helmet, all studded with pieces of silver armor along the helmet, elbows and knees. Forever silent and serious, it wields it jagged sword in a battle ready stance. "I think I'll end."

Melei: "I draw." (Twin-headed Behemoth) "It's time to place the final piece of my plan. I now summon in attack mode, Banisher of the Light (100/2000)." A light fills the field as a man, wearing a radiant, gold robe and blue hat, walks into the field. "As long as it is on the field, all cards that are played on the field get removed from the game instead of going to the Graveyard. Now I can use Castle Gate's ability once again to do damage to you. Go, my Survivor!" As the Gates open, Banisher of the Light points to a far off point in the direction of those gates. D. D. Survivor flings herself with arms wide open. Her soul bursts out, spiritual fists clinched and gives Alain a powerful punch to the gut. "I now activate Mistobody. Any monster equipped with this card cannot be destroyed in battle. With that I end." Before Alain's turn begins, a rip in space, stars filling this rip, walking through this rip is D. D. Survivor, her look of determination not removed.

Alain, with shock on his face: "How exactly...?"

Melei answers before he finishes: "When D. D. Survivor is removed from play while on th eifeld, she returns to the field at that turn's End Phase."

Melei's LP: 4900

Alain's LP: 4500

Alain: "Cool, basically an everlasting source of Burn for your deck. I might be able to beat it, but if not, at least I learn a new Burn type. Either way, I draw." (Dark Mimic Lv1) "Now, at my Stanby Phase, my Swordsman can grow a little more. I now sacrifice it to Special Summon Silent Swordsman Lv5!" Time passes, metaphorically, for the child, making him grow. His sword, his clothes are now longerwith his sword resting on his right shoulder. "But I am not done yet. I activate another Level Up!, sacrificing my swordsman for his fully-grown adult self, Silent Swordsman Lv7 (2800/1000)!" The styling young adult further grows up. Once a spitfire teen, now a battle-hardened adult, his now longer sword resting in the ground near his left leg in the ground below. "At level 3, my Swordsman could not be destroyed by your spells. At level 5, he's totally immune to all your spells. Now, at level 7, any spells that are activated has their effect negated. I cannot do much more than attack Banisher of the Light with my Mage." A white fury shoots from the magician's staff destroying the once proud man. "I'll end." _My ultimate team, on the field, just wish I had my lockdown complete with Royal Decree._

Melei: _Hmm...if all of these are the silent, then one thing must happen to fully complete the prophecy, though, from appearances, it has already been fulfilled._ "I summon Twin-headed Behemoth (1500/1200)." A winged, two-headed dragonof purpple and gold flys into position at Meleei's side. "I sacrifice D. D. Survivor to my Castle Gate again." After another punch to the gut, his LP drop.

Melei's LP: 4900

Alain's LP: 2700

Melei: "I end."

Alain, once again picks himself off the dusty ground, defiance in his eyes: "Something about this duels just made me realize I should try to win it. So I'll draw." (Silent Monarch Lv4) "I think I'll summon my Silent Monarch Lv4 (1600/1600)." A warrior of regal stature walks forht from the bright light that had just covered the field. It's pure white armored reflect off it, blinding anyone who looked directly at it. It's helmet was worn with the symbol of light, giving rise to its supremacy over all Light Attributes. "I'll end for now."

Melei: "I draw." (Nightmare's Steelcage) "I'll sacrifice my Behemoth to Castle Gate and when it is done by this effect, it returns to the field with 1000 attack and defense at the end on my turn." After the dragon goes in, it's spirit comes forth hitting Alain back to the ground. "I end." And as she said that, her dragon, thought weak and barely flying, appears to her side to once again to do battle.

Melei's LP: 4900

Alain's LP: 1200

Alain gets up from the other hit: "I draw." (Spiritualism) "Ahh...the simple things in life ," he says with mischief in his eyes.

Melei: "May I ask you why you say that?"

Michael looks at Ethan, then Gonzalo and Raj, with a smile on his face, "Guys, you are about to see some serious play. My brother just found a loophole in the gameplay."

"What do you mean?," Ethan asks, " From the look of the field, Melei can't be damaged while every is prevented to use spells.".

"You probably already know my brother likes to use unused deck ideas, like the Silent Swordsman lockdown instead of the Horus lockdown. He is made fun of this but this game is something he wants to enjoy and be unique in, not a regular unseen netdecker.Well, he also likes to find loopholes in his own deck, a way around devastating effects that from time to time turn the whole thing around. You can tell he just found one."

Alain, answering Melei's direct question: "You can. As I already told you, my Swordsman negates the effects of Spells on the field, but...there is one spell that can, not only win me the game, but also not be negated by the effects of other cards. I use the card, Spiritualism!" The heads of three ghosts emerges from the holographic representation of the card, all moving erratically towards the Spirit Barrier on her field, which upon being touched, faded away to nothingness, appearing in her hand. "What I just did was return your trap to your hand, making it impossible to escape damage. Now Silent Monarch, attack that dragon." The king of all Lights rushes toward it, it's large double-bladed axe magically appears. Lifting that large weapon overhead, he brings it down with a force many rarely see. "Now, my Siolent Magician and Swordsman, attack Castle Gate." A white fury forms from the flurries of light around him. When they full gathered, it launches at the gates, cracking them at it hits. With that done, taking his great sword into his hand, the silent warrior jumps higher than the hieght of the golem. He brings his sword down through the mighty stone menace as gravity takes it toll, destroying the monster in a shower of its own rock and splintered wood.

Melei's LP: 0

Alain's LP: 1200

Alain, in the wake of the win, walks by to his former opponent, raises his hand for a hadshake, "Thanks for giving me a good duel. I thoguht I knew all the Burns out there, but today I saw a new one. I really appreciate it."

"You are welcome Alain," Melei says, "I believe I have an explanation to give you as part of the wages of this duel and I expect that your company won't be talked out of not knowing." She looks at the four of them and gesture that they come closer. A few seconds later, Melei continues, "My name is Cheung Melei, and I am a guardian of a prophecy..."

_to be continued..._

Cards made up this chapter

Silent Monarch Lv4

Light/Warrior

Lv4/1600/1600

Place one Crown Counter on this monster for each Trap activated (max. 3). This monster gains 300 ATT and DEF for each counter. When this monster receives it third counter, on the next Standby Phase, you can sacrifice this monster with its counters to Special Summon one "Silent Monarch Lv6" from your deck or hand.

Castle Gates (from the OCG)

Earth/Rock

Lv6/0/2400

This card cannot be destroyed during battle. When this card is face-up in ATT position, sacrifing one monster on the field will inflict damage on your opponent's LP equal to that monster's original ATT. This effect can onlt be used once per turn.

Mistobody (from the OCG)

Equip Spell

While this card is equipped to a monster card, that monster cannot be destroyed in battle (Damage calculation is still applied.)


End file.
